Sno cones become hot commodity during summer
Area stands draw crowds when temps heat up
By Doreen Muzzi
DBJ Editor

Several decades ago, it was a common sight to see an old wooden table with a hand-cranked ice crusher, flanked by jars of flavored liquids, on the front lawns of many homes. Back then, they were called “snow ball” stands.

From such humble beginnings, the “sno cone” has become big business, especially during the summer months, with owners tagging their stands with ingenious names like “Summer Snow” and “Snow Biz.” These small, seasonal businesses are now totally electric and even computerized in some large metropolitan areas.
They’re especially popular in Southern locales such as the Delta, where the warm-weather months outnumber the cold ones.

About four or five sno cone stands open in Cleveland, Miss., during the summer, says Judson Thigpen, director of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce. “More are being established every year. They help to offer employment to the area’s teenagers, and they contribute to the sales tax base. Anytime a new business opens that fulfills a need, it helps to keep that money in town, and it helps the city’s revenue. So we’re pleased to see the sno cone stands,” says Thigpen.

James Jeffcoat, manager of the Sunflower Store in Indianola, Miss., opened a sno cone stand about 10 years ago, and it was an immediate success.

“We found a location near Highway 82 directly behind the Shell Station. When the weather gets hot, we do a booming business. People stopping to shop in that area will see our stand and they can’t resist a cool sno cone,” says Jeffcoat.

He says the stand also gives him the opportunity to help youngsters with summer work. “Some of these young people would not be able to find a summer job without places like sno cone stands,” he says.

It isn’t uncommon in Indianola to see local runners and walkers end their exercise routine with a stop at “Delta Snow,” the name of Jeffcoat’s small sno cone stand. Other sno cone stands in the Delta have branched out into selling food items. “We are strictly sno cones, but we have a flavor to please the taste buds of everyone,” he says.

Sno cone stands also start to appear each summer in Clarksdale, Miss., says Ron Hudson with the Clarksdale Chamber of Commerce. “These stands usually employ about two or three workers each, mostly teenagers. They seem to do pretty well financially. They always draw a crowd in the summer – it’s an old tradition,” says Hudson.

Before zoning ordinances, “snow ball” stands were a way for youngsters to make extra spending money during the summer. Two young men who grew up in Indianola, Miss., operated one of the most successful of these snow ball stands back in the 1960s.

Their experience as young entrepreneurs must have paid off. The two were Frank Buchanan, who retired a few years ago as chief engineer for Entergy in Jackson, Miss., and his brother, Curtis, who retired last year as President of Am-South Bank in Greenville. Their grandmother’s front lawn was always crowded with youngsters playing ping-pong and licking snow balls.

At the time, flavors were limited to red, green or yellow. Nowadays, crushed or shaved ice aficionados can choose from such exotic flavors as Fuzzy Navel, Tiger Blood and Pink Lemon Sour, as well as dozens of others.

The history of the sno cone dates back to 1934, when inventor Ernest Hansen patented the first known “ice block shaver” in New Orleans, La. He was inspired to create a more refined and hygienic version of the popular “Italian Ice” sold from push-carts in the city.

Hansen’s wife Mary created many flavors of fresh syrups to flavor his finely shaved artificial “snow.” Eventually, snow balls became known as sno cones, and their popularity grew worldwide. Sno cones are typically made of compacted shaved ice flavored with brightly colored, sugary syrup, usually fruit flavored. Variations include the “stuffed” sno cone, with a layer of soft-serve vanilla ice cream inside. DBJ

                                                                       <HOME>