
City of Latrobe, PA – Birthplace of the Banana Split
1904
In 1904, David Strickler, a 23-year-old soda jerk at a Latrobe drugstore, cut a banana lengthwise, added vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream and topped it with syrups, marshmallow, chopped nuts, whipped cream, and a maraschino cherry – and made banana and dessert history. Within a few years, the Banana Split had become a national phenomenon and Strickler an ice cream industry legend.


2013
In 2013, to commemorate the ripest of milestones, Latrobe worked with the Pennsylvania Historical Society to erect an official marker on the site of the original pharmacy and hosted its first Great American Banana Split Celebration which has become a nationally famous annual event that draws tens of thousands of banana and dessert lovers every August.