| W. B. Shearn | |
| Birth Name: | William Benjamin Shearn |
| Birth Date: | 1872 |
| Birth Place: | St Giles, Middlesex, England |
| Death Date: | 12 January 1938 (aged 65) |
| Death Place: | London, England |
| Resting Place: | St. Pancras Cemetery, London, England |
| Occupation: | Businessman, florist, vegetarianism activist |
| 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.
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]
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]
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. He was buried in St. Pancras Cemetery.[19] His fruit store was closed in 1961.