Dairy Queen Became the First Fast Food Franchise in County

Today Brevard has numerous fast food franchises along the Asheville Highway but in the 1950s there were few businesses of any type beyond Brevard College.  There were a number of restaurants in downtown Brevard that served meals to travelers or those who wished to dine out.  For something quick to eat, like a burger and fries or for treats, like milkshakes or sundaes there were drug store soda shops or the Chatterbox across from the high school on Broad St.

The first chain or franchise restaurant in Transylvania County appears to have been the Dairy Queen located on the N. Broad St. (Asheville Highway) just beyond Brevard College.

This week's photograph shows the original Dairy Queen logo with simple text
and a soft serve cone at one end.

The very first Dairy Queen had opened in Joliet, Illinois on June 22, 1940.  They sold soft-serve ice cream that had been developed by J.F. and Alex McCullough two years earlier.  The McCullough’s had persuaded a friend, Sherb Noble, to sell their product at his ice cream store.  It was an overwhelming success, selling 1,600 servings in just two hours!  Noble and the McCulloughs soon went into business together and Dairy Queen was born.  They went from 10 stores in 1941 to 100 in 1947 and by 1955 there were 2,600 Dairy Queens across the U.S.  The first Dairy Queen in North Carolina opened on Wilkerson Blvd. in Charlotte in 1947.  Today they are an international business with thousands of locations in over two dozen countries.

A search of newspapers, phone books and other resources revealed very little information about the Brevard Dairy Queen though.  An advertisement in the May 26, 1955 Transylvania Times listed the hours as 10:00 am until 11:00 pm, Monday through Saturday, on Sundays they opened at 11:30 am.  Mr. and Mrs. George Adams were the owners. They sold sandwiches, hamburger plates, French fries, cold drinks and of course, ice cream desserts.  Sundaes cost 25 cents.

The Brevard Dairy Queen appears to have only been in business for few years in the mid-to-late 1950s and possibly in the early 1960s.  By 1962 Dairyland was operating out of the former Dairy Queen building.  Dairyland was is business for about 10 years.  If you have photographs or additional information about Dairy Queen or Dairyland please contact the staff in the Local History Room at the Transylvania County Library.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library. Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs. For more information, comments, or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-1820.