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W. B. Shearn
W. B. Shearn
Born	William Benjamin Shearn; 1872; St Giles, Middlesex, England
Died	12 January 1938 (aged 65); London, England
Resting place	St. Pancras Cemetery, London, England
Occupation(s)	Businessman, florist, vegetarianism activist
Spouse	Ella Masterson (m. 1914)
Children	1

William Benjamin Shearn (1872 – 12 January 1938) was an English businessman, florist, and vegetarianism activist, who promoted a fruitarian way of living. He managed a fruitarian restaurant at Tottenham Court Road.

Early life

Shearn was born in the first quarter of 1872 in St. Giles, Middlesex.^[1] He was christened on 11 February 1880 at Saint John the Evangelist, Charlotte Street, Camden.^[2]

Career

Shearn's father Benjamin Shearn (1829–1913) was the owner of the first fruitarian restaurant in London, established in 1905.^[3] The restaurant was positioned above his fruit store at 231-234 Tottenham Court Road, that were both managed by Shearn.^[4]^[5] The ground floor was a florist and greengrocer and the two upper floors belonged to the restaurant.^[5] The restaurant served nutmeat.^[5] Alfred Perlès described it as "probably the best vegetarian restaurant in the world, with the emphasis on a fruitarian diet".^[6] Customers would pay two shillings to consume as much fruit and nuts that they could eat with a cup of coffee, cream and brown bread and butter.^[6] Shearn is credited with introducing grapefruit and "fruit lunch" to the British public.^[7] Shearn's company advertised itself as the "World's Largest Fruitarian Stores".^[8]

The restaurant contained a fruit saloon luncheon room that became a popular meeting place for members of the London Vegetarian Society.^[9] Shearn cooperated with The Children's Realm, a children's vegetarian magazine published by the London Vegetarian Society and Vegetarian Federal Union.^[9] Advertisements for his store were featured in the magazine. In 1907, Shearn offered a basket of fruit as an award for the best "Why I am a Vegetarian" children's essay. He organized parties for vegetarian children at his restaurant.^[9]

In 1909, Shearn donated 2000 oranges for poor children in London.^[10] He was the first president of the British division of the Florists Telegraph Delivery Association.^[7]^[11] Shearn was the editor of The Practical Fruiterer and Florist.^[12]

Shearn visited the United States in 1933, where he received the title of "Ambassador of the Floral Kingdom of England".^[13]

Personal life and death

Shearn was a vegetarian but preferred the term fruitarian. His diet consisted of fruit, nuts and vegetables with dairy products and eggs.^[14]^[15]

Shearn married Ella Masterson at St Giles in the Fields in 1914.^[14] Their wedding was described as a "fruitarian wedding" as Ella wore cherries in her hair and the bridesmaids carried baskets of fruit.^[14]^[16] The vegetarian meal served for over a hundred guests in a room decorated as a fruit and flower garden was a Brazil nut cutlet, mock chicken made from almonds and pine kernels, savoury nuts with cucumber and an egg gateau.^[14] Shearn stated that "I am such a firm believer in fruit as a means of keeping fit and well that I determined to have a fruitarian wedding in order to popularise this form of diet".^[14]

Shearn and Ella had one son born in 1916.^[17] He was Major John Benjamin Shearn.^[18]

Shearn died on 12 January 1938 in London.^{[note 1]} He was buried in St. Pancras Cemetery.^[20] His fruit store was closed in 1961.^[18]

Selected publications

The Practical Fruiterer and Florist (3 volumes, 1935)

Notes

^ In the England & Wales Index of Wills and Administrations his place of death is listed at University College Hospital London,^[19] but The Observer obituary states that he died at his home.^[20]

References

^ "Births Mar 1872". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
^ London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Board of Guardian Records, 1834-1906/Church of England Parish Registers, 1754-1906; Reference Number: p90/jne1/010.
^ "Death of Mr. B. Shearn". The Guardian. March 28, 1913. p. 5. (subscription required)
^ Catering Management: A Comprehensive Guide to the Successful Management of Hotel, Restaurant, Boarding House, Popular Café, Tea Rooms, and Every Other Branch of Catering, Including a Section on the Law and the Caterer. Waverly Book Company. 1919. p. 4.
^ ^a ^b ^c Wright, Laura (2022). The Social Life of Words: A Historical Approach. Wiley. p. 189. ISBN 978-1119881056.
^ ^a ^b Perlès, Alfred (1946). Round Trip. D. Dobson. p. 46.
^ ^a ^b "William B. Shearn". The New York Times. 1938.
^ "Shearn's: The World's Largest Fruitarian Stores" (PDF). The Herald of the Golden Age and British Health Review. 15 (1). 1912.
^ ^a ^b ^c Kubisz, Marzena (2024). "The Stepping Stones of Another Order". Vegetarian Childhood in Early Victorian Discourse and Literary Representation. Routledge. pp. 9–36. doi:10.4324/9781003400042-2. ISBN 978-1003400042.
^ "Warships's Message to Poor Children". The Daily Mirror. December 18, 1909. p. 4. (subscription required)
^ "Banquet". The Florist's Review. 54 (6): 38. 1924.
^ "Floristry in 1930s Britain". Garden Museum. Archived from the original on November 30, 2023.
^ "Obituary". The Times of Northwest Indiana. 1938-02-28. p. 8.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "A "Nutty" Wedding". The Daily Mirror. May 29, 1914. p. 13. (subscription required)
^ "W. B. Shearn". Dubin Evening Mail. December 5, 1916. p. 2. (subscription required)
^ "The Bridal Cherry". Sheffield Daily Telegraph. June 11, 1914. p. 9. (subscription required)
^ "The Cherry Bride's Baby". The Daily Mirror. September 22, 1916. p. 7. (subscription required)
^ ^a ^b "Old Eastbournian" (PDF). Eastbourne College. 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 26, 2024.
^ England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1861-1941.
^ ^a ^b "Death of Mr. W. B. Shearn". The Observer. January 16, 1938. p. 10. (subscription required)

[21] In the England & Wales Index of Wills and Administrations his place of death is listed at University College Hospital London,^[19] but The Observer obituary states that he died at his home.^[20]

[1] "Births Mar 1872". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 29 October 2024.

[2] London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Board of Guardian Records, 1834-1906/Church of England Parish Registers, 1754-1906; Reference Number: p90/jne1/010.

[3] "Death of Mr. B. Shearn". The Guardian. March 28, 1913. p. 5. (subscription required)

[Catering_Management-4] Catering Management: A Comprehensive Guide to the Successful Management of Hotel, Restaurant, Boarding House, Popular Café, Tea Rooms, and Every Other Branch of Catering, Including a Section on the Law and the Caterer. Waverly Book Company. 1919. p. 4.

[Wright_2022-5] Wright, Laura (2022). The Social Life of Words: A Historical Approach. Wiley. p. 189. ISBN 978-1119881056.

[Perlès_1946-6] Perlès, Alfred (1946). Round Trip. D. Dobson. p. 46.

[The_New_York_Times-7] "William B. Shearn". The New York Times. 1938.

[8] "Shearn's: The World's Largest Fruitarian Stores" (PDF). The Herald of the Golden Age and British Health Review. 15 (1). 1912.

[Kubisz_2024-9] Kubisz, Marzena (2024). "The Stepping Stones of Another Order". Vegetarian Childhood in Early Victorian Discourse and Literary Representation. Routledge. pp. 9–36. doi:10.4324/9781003400042-2. ISBN 978-1003400042.

[10] "Warships's Message to Poor Children". The Daily Mirror. December 18, 1909. p. 4. (subscription required)

[11] "Banquet". The Florist's Review. 54 (6): 38. 1924.

[12] "Floristry in 1930s Britain". Garden Museum. Archived from the original on November 30, 2023.

[13] "Obituary". The Times of Northwest Indiana. 1938-02-28. p. 8.

[Fruitarian_Wedding-14] "A "Nutty" Wedding". The Daily Mirror. May 29, 1914. p. 13. (subscription required)

[15] "W. B. Shearn". Dubin Evening Mail. December 5, 1916. p. 2. (subscription required)

[16] "The Bridal Cherry". Sheffield Daily Telegraph. June 11, 1914. p. 9. (subscription required)

[17] "The Cherry Bride's Baby". The Daily Mirror. September 22, 1916. p. 7. (subscription required)

[Eastbourne-18] "Old Eastbournian" (PDF). Eastbourne College. 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 26, 2024.

[19] England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1861-1941.

[Observer-20] "Death of Mr. W. B. Shearn". The Observer. January 16, 1938. p. 10. (subscription required)

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PROFILPELAJAR.COM

W. B. Shearn

Early life

Career

Personal life and death

Selected publications

Notes

References

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