Green Ash – Fraxinus pennsylvanica

by | Dec 15, 2023 | NE Native Trees

How Can We Help?
You are here:
< Back

Robert Elliott O'Callaghan (December 1855 – December 1936) was an English vegetarianism activist, lecturer and writer.

O'Callaghan was born in London in 1855 to Irish Catholic parents. He became a prominent vegetarian advocate after being inspired by Francis William Newman. O'Callaghan joined the London Food Reform Society in 1880, rapidly rising to its Executive. He held key roles such as official lecturer for the Vegetarian Association, secretary of the London Vegetarian Society, and First Secretary of the Vegetarian Federal Union. O'Callaghan managed the Wheat Sheaf vegetarian restaurant and authored several works on vegetarianism. In 1900, he founded the Catholic Humane League. O'Callaghan died in Manchester in 1936, and was buried in the Southern Cemetery.

Biography

Robert Elliott O'Callaghan was born in St Pancras, London, in December 1855,[1] of Irish Catholic descent.[2]: 88  His attention was first directed to vegetarianism by one of Francis William Newman's lectures, a report of which he noticed in a shop window. In 1880, he joined the London Food Reform Society and became a member of its Executive the following year. O'Callaghan gained recognition for his effective lectures on vegetarianism, often enhanced with illustrations using a magic lantern.[3]

O'Callaghan held several significant positions within the vegetarian movement. He served as the official lecturer for the Vegetarian Association,[4] the secretary of the London Vegetarian Society,[5] and, from 1890, as the First Secretary of the Vegetarian Federal Union. He later acted as an agent for the Federal Union for the Southern Counties.[3]

In 1888, O'Callaghan married Mary Ann Barry in Fulham,[6] and the couple had one daughter, Florence.[7] He became the proprietor of the London vegetarian restaurant, the Wheat Sheaf, located at 13 Rathbone Place, Oxford Street, taking over from Mrs. Britton.[2]: 88 

O'Callaghan authored several publications on vegetarianism. In 1889, he published The Best Diet for a Working Man.[8] The following year, he co-authored The Manual of Vegetarianism: A Complete Guide to Food Reform with Charles W. Forward.[2]: 351  This was followed by The Diet of Health & Happiness in 1893[9]: 7  and How to Begin Vegetarianism with Month's Dietary and Cookery Book.[10] He also published a pamphlet, The Testimony of Science Against Flesh Eating.[11]

In 1900, O'Callaghan founded the Catholic Humane League, aimed at promoting humane principles among Catholics in line with the teachings of the Church. He served as its Honorary Secretary.[12]

O'Callaghan later moved to Manchester with his family and worked as the secretary of a philanthropy society.[13] He died there in December 1936 at the age of 81.[14] He was buried three days later in the Southern Cemetery.[15]

Publications

  • The Best Diet for a Working Man (1889)
  • The Manual of Vegetarianism: A Complete Guide to Food Reform (with Charles W. Forward; 1890)
  • The Diet of Health & Happiness (1893)
  • How to Begin Vegetarianism with Month's Dietary and Cookery Book (1897)
  • The Testimony of Science Against Flesh Eating

References

  1. ^ "Births Dec 1855". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  2. ^ a b c Gregory, James Richard Thomas Elliott (May 2002). "Biographical Index of British Vegetarians and Food reformers of the Victorian Era". The Vegetarian Movement in Britain c.1840–1901: A Study of Its Development, Personnel and Wider Connections (PDF). Vol. 2. University of Southampton. Retrieved 2022-10-02.
  3. ^ a b Forward, Charles Walter (1898). Fifty Years of Food Reform: A History of the Vegetarian Movement in England. London; Manchester: The Ideal Publishing Union; The Vegetarian Society. p. 148.
  4. ^ "Appointments for March". Good Health. 6 (3): 85. 1908-03-01.
  5. ^ "Vegetarianism in Sheffield". Sheffield and Rotherham Independent. 1889-08-21. p. 6.
  6. ^ FreeBMD. England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.
  7. ^ Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives, 1901.
  8. ^ "Bibliography: The Vegetarian Movement in England 1847-1981". International Vegetarian Union (IVU). Retrieved 2024-01-03.
  9. ^ "John Johnson Collection: pre-1960 ephemera; Societies: Health, Vegetarian" (PDF). Bodleian Libraries. Retrieved 2024-01-03.
  10. ^ "How to begin vegetarianism with month's dietary and cookery book". WorldCat.org. Retrieved 2024-01-03.
  11. ^ "Other Publications Received". Metaphysical Magazine: A Monthly Review of the Occult Sciences. 6–7. New York: The Metaphysical Publishing Company: 78. June 1897 – March 1898 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Boulger, G. S., ed. (1900). Nature Notes: The Selborne Society's Magazine. Vol. XI. London: H. Sotheran (published November 1900). pp. 202–203.
  13. ^ Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives of the UK (TNA) Series RG14, 1911.
  14. ^ "Deaths Dec 1936". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  15. ^ "Mr Robert Elliot O'Callaghan". Burial Records Search. Manchester City Council. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
Categories
Table of Contents