W. B. Shearn

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]