Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory, Vermont

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory in Waterbury, Vermont

A aerial view of the home of Ben & Jerry's Vermont's Finest ice cream and frozen yogurt.  See how ice cream is made in our fun factory tour.  The tour, scoop shop, gift shop and grounds are open year round.  

Photo: John Goodman

postmarked in 2010 with a 32 cent stamp

the sender writes:

This tour was short, but worth the trip.  They have a cemetery for retired ice cream flavors.

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In 1977 lifelong friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield completed a correspondence course on ice cream making from the Pennsylvania State University. On May 5, 1978, with a $12,000 investment the pair opened an ice cream parlor in a renovated gas station in downtown Burlington, Vermont. In 1979, they marked their anniversary by holding the first-ever free cone day, now a nationwide annual celebration.

In 1980, Ben and Jerry rented space in an old spool and bobbin mill on South Champlain Street in Burlington and began packing their ice cream in pints. In 1981, the first Ben & Jerry’s franchise opened on Route 7 in Shelburne, Vermont. In 1983, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream was used to build “the world’s largest ice cream sundae” in St. Albans (city), Vermont; the sundae weighed 27,102 pounds.