Often inspired by what’s around me I rarely decide to start searching for advertisements, articles or information without some sort of preceding trigger. Today’s trigger came in the form of a book. While happily browsing through endless shelves of books in Dymocks I spotted one which immediately grabbed my attention; a book about the history of Peters Ice Cream. I didn’t end up buying the book but simply seeing it and flicking through it was enough to set the wheels in motion and I immediately decided to start searching for historic Peters Ice Cream ads.
In the early 1900s ice cream was not a product which was easy to come by in Australia. Thus, in 1907 after feeling homesick for his favourite treat, Fred Peters (an American migrant) decided to change this fact and began making bricks of ice cream in his backyard in Manly. Originally named Peters American Delicacy Company, Fred started selling the ice cream off the back of a horse and cart.
The company grew and became increasingly popular with the Australian public. This popularity was partly due to their successful advertising and marketing campaigns.
1915 – Peters Talk No. 4
1929 – Be Quiet – till I finish my Peters Ice Cream!
1936 – A Treat Indeed!
1946 – Food fit for a King
1951 – Always her Favourite!
1973 – Five Family Favourites
1982 – Something quite unique in this artificial world.
In 1996 Peters Ice Cream was bought by the international company Nestle and despite its change of ownership, the ice cream continues to made in the Australian factories. The change however took a little longer in Western Australia. It continued to be run as Peters Ice Cream until 2009 when the final part of the company was also sold to Nestle. Western Australia no longer produces Peters/Nestle ice cream and it is now imported from the eastern states.
Peters Ice Cream is one of many examples of Australian companies which have humble origins and over the years are built stronger and stronger through the hard work and dedication of the people that started them.
Sources:
- Historic information obtained from the website: Only Melbourne (http://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/).
- Historic information obtained from Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peters_Ice_Cream).
- 1915 ‘Advertising.’, The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1889-1931), 3 December, p. 11, viewed 25 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8664300
- 1929 ‘Advertising.’, The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842-1954), 18 January, p. 18, viewed 25 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16524513
- 1936 ‘Advertising.’, Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902-1954), 22 November, p. 33, viewed 25 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58775183
- 1946 ‘Advertising.’, The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842-1954), 29 January, p. 4 Supplement: The Sydney Morning Herald Magazine, viewed 25 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17968857
- 1951 ‘Advertising.’, The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879-1954), 10 November, p. 11, viewed 25 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article48999299
- 1973 ‘Advertising.’, The Australian Women’s Weekly (1932-1982), 23 May, p. 103, viewed 26 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article51201199
- 1982 ‘Advertising.’, The Australian Women’s Weekly (1932-1982), 24 November, p. 96, viewed 26 April, 2011, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55463310
Finding Family 
And now it doesn’t taste as good. 😦
I completely agree! They change the owner and then change the taste. So disappointing!
I remember in the 1950s, Peters Smack, a cylinder of vanilla icecream coated in fine crackly chocolate and wrapped in white paper with blue writing.
We would buy one to eat at the Friday night pictures in Mosman Park, Western Australia. In those days icecream actually tasted delicious. Now it’s sickly sweet and with who knows what in it.