Ice cream barge

Frozen dessert ship

Ice cream barge

An ice cream barge was a vessel employed by the United States Navy (USN) in the Pacific theater of World War II to produce ice cream in large quantities to be provisioned to sailors and US Marines. The craft, a concrete barge acquired from the US Army and worth one million dollars,[1][2] was able to create 10 US gallons (38 L) of ice cream every seven minutes, or approximately 500 US gal (1,900 L) per shift, and could store 2,000 US gal (7,600 L).[3][4] It was employed in the USN's Western Pacific area of operations, at one point anchored at Naval Base Ulithi.[5] These ships were intended to raise the morale of US troops overseas by producing ice cream at a fast rate. The army built three concrete barges of their own, specifically for making ice cream.[6]

## See also

[edit]

* USS Quartz (IX-150), a contemporary of the ice cream barge, used as a "crockery" ship

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Wingo 1994, p. 162.
2. ^ Funderburg 1995, p. 143.
3. ^ Meister 2017, p. 78.
4. ^ "Unique Ships of the U.S. Navy". Official website. United States Naval Institute. January 30, 2015.
5. ^ Bovbjerg 2004, p. 13.
6. ^ Keller, Jared (August 7, 2017). "How The Navy's Ban On Booze Birthed A Million-Dollar Floating Ice Cream Parlor". taskandpurpose.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2024.

### Sources

[edit]

* Bovbjerg, R. V. (2004). Steaming as Before. G - Reference, Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series. Hamilton Books. ISBN 978-0-7618-2850-1.
* Wingo, J. D. (1994). Mother was a gunner's mate: World War II in the Waves. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-924-6.
* Meister, C. (2017). Totally Amazing Facts About Military Vehicles. Mind Benders. Capstone Press, an Capstone imprint. ISBN 978-1-5157-4542-6.
* Funderburg, A. C. (1995). Chocolate, Strawberry, and Vanilla: A History of American Ice Cream. Bowling Green State University Popular Press. ISBN 978-0-87972-692-8. Retrieved 2018-06-23.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Matt Siegel (August 6, 2017). "How Ice Cream Helped America at War: For decades, the military made sure soldiers had access to the treat—including spending $1 million on a floating ice-cream factory". The Atlantic.

* v
* t
* e

United States naval ship classes of World War II

Aircraft carriers|

* Lexington
* RangerS
* Yorktown
* WaspS
* Essex
* MidwayC

Light aircraft carriers|

* Independence
* SaipanC

Escort carriers|

* Long Island
* Charger
* Bogue
* Sangamon
* Casablanca
* Commencement Bay

Battleships|

* Wyoming
* New York
* Nevada
* Pennsylvania
* New Mexico
* Tennessee
* Colorado
* North Carolina
* South Dakota
* Iowa
* MontanaX

Large cruisers|

* Alaska

Heavy cruisers|

* Pensacola
* Northampton
* Portland
* New Orleans
* WichitaS
* Baltimore
* Oregon CityC
* Des MoinesC

Light cruisers|

* Omaha
* Brooklyn
* Atlanta
* Cleveland
* FargoC
* JuneauC
* WorcesterC
* CL-154X

Gunboats|

* Dubuque
* SacramentoS
* Asheville
* PlymouthS
* WilliamsburgS
* St. AugustineS
* VixenS
* Erie
* PGM-1
* PGM-9

Destroyers|

* Sampson
* Caldwell
* Wickes
* Clemson
* Farragut
* Porter
* Mahan
* Gridley
* Bagley
* Somers
* Benham
* Sims
* Benson
* Gleaves
* Fletcher
* Allen M. Sumner
* Robert H. Smith
* Gearing

Destroyer escorts|

* Evarts
* Buckley
* Cannon
* Edsall
* Rudderow
* John C. Butler

Patrol frigates|

* Asheville
* Tacoma

Patrol boats|

* Action
* PT boat

Minelayers|

* OglalaS
* WassucS
* MonadnockS
* MiantonomahS
* TerrorS
* KeokukS
* SalemS
* WeehawkenS
* Camanche
* Chimo

Minesweepers|

* Lapwing
* Raven
* Auk
* EagleS
* Hawk
* Admirable

Submarines|

* O
* R
* S
* Barracuda
* ArgonautS
* Narwhal
* DolphinS
* Cachalot
* Porpoise
* Salmon
* Sargo
* Tambor
* Mackerel
* Gato
* Balao
* Tench

Tankers|

* T1 tanker
* T2 tanker
* T3 tanker

Cargo ships|

* Liberty
* Victory
* Haskell
* Andromeda
* Arcturus
* Artemis
* Tolland
* Alstede
* Aldebaran
* Adria
* Acubens
* Arctic
* Denebola
* Hyades
* Mizar

Auxiliary ships|

* Ammunition
* Floating drydock
* Repair dock
* Barracks
* Collier
* Combat stores
* Destroyer tender
* Depot
* High-speed transport
* Hospital
* Ice cream barge
* Net laying
* Motor torpedo boat tender
* Reefer
* Oiler
* Repair
* Seaplane tender
* Submarine tender
* Underway replenishment

Completed after the war

Single ship of class

Cancelled
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template