America's Hidden Meals
The History of Vegetarianism in the U.S.
Please use the Table of Contents above to jump to different sections
Origins: Who Were the First Vegetarians?
“Man was not born a carnivorous animal, but born to live on fruits and herbs that the earth grows.” Mahatma Gandhi (The Moral Basis of Vegetarianism)
18th Century American Vegetarians
As Europeans immigrated to the colonial United States in the 1700s, the vegetarian social movement came with them.
19th Century American Vegetarians
In the early 19th century, vegetarianism in America became more organized and more visible.
Early Influencers
Influential Organizations and Publications
Social Reform Movements
From Ideas to Organized Action
John Harvey Kellogg (1852-1943)
J.H. Kellogg (Image source: public domain)
John Harvey Kellogg was hired by Ellen G. White in 1875 to take charge of The San. A trained medical professional, Kellogg attracted celebrities of the time such as Henry Ford and Montgomery Ward. Most significantly, the San under Kellogg would produce vegetarian packaged foods sold by mail which included the new foods of breakfast cereal, peanut butter, and plant-based meats.
His brother W. K. Kellogg formed the Kellogg Company based on The San’s ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, but with added sugar.
"Disease is cured by the body itself, not by doctors or remedies.” John Harvey Kellogg, Colon Hygiene, 1923
The World's Columbian Exposition (1893)
Restaurants, Food, and Diet
Midcentury Doldrums
With the onset of the Great Depression followed by the start of World War II, vegetarianism faded from mainstream U.S. culture. However, some individual Americans and groups of Americans continued to practice vegetarianism, quietly.
1970's Resurgence
Much of the late 19th and early 20th century vegetarian movement was linked to social reform, which tended to dilute the message of its impact upon human health, the well-being of animals and environmental degradation. This weakening of the significance of vegetarianism, combined with the diminished energy available during WW1, WW11 and the Great Depression brought the movement almost to a standstill by the mid 20’th century.
By the late 20th century, with two world wars and a great depression in the past, vegetarianism experienced a significant resurgence of interest in the U.S.
1980s & 1990s Growth
In the final decades of the 20th century, vegetarians become more organized and more vocal. At the same time, numerous medical studies were published linking vegetarian diets with health and disease reversal.
Vegetarian Medical Science Accumulates
In the 1980's and 1990's, significant medical research accumulated linking vegetarian foods with health and longevity.
