E. Dolby Shelton

Edward Dolby Shelton (5 January 1856 – 1 April 1944) was an English printer, publisher, and social reformer. He was known for his advocacy of temperance and vegetarianism. Shelton's career included managing Alexander Thomson's printing business in Manchester and co-running a printing and publishing venture on the Isle of Wight. He notably managed the Ventnor Vegetarian Hotel there, which hosted prominent figures like Mahatma Gandhi. Later in life, he focused on business and church activities in Ely, Cambridgeshire, while continuing to promote vegetarianism alongside his wife, Frances.

Edward Dolby Shelton was born in Peterborough on 5 January 1856.^[1][2] He attended the British School there until the age of 11.^[3]

Shelton became a vegetarian after hearing a lecture by J. M. Skinner, a fellow Good Templar and temperance advocate, while living in Leicester. His involvement in vegetarianism deepened after he moved to Northampton and joined the Vegetarian Society.^[4]

In 1880, Shelton moved to Manchester and worked for Alexander Thomson's printing business. In Manchester he met leading vegetarians and lived with Joseph Alley, a strict vegetarian. Shelton became active in the Vegetarian Society and later joined its executive committee, encouraged by R. Bailey Walker.^[4]

In the second quarter of 1885, he married Frances Elizabeth Stroulger;^[5][6] they had one son, Percival.^[7] Shelton moved to London in May 1885. Vegetarianism initially divided the household, but his wife later adopted the diet.^[4]

In 1888, the family moved to Ventnor on the Isle of Wight for health reasons. Shelton co-managed the Isle of Wight Express, a publication which refused alcohol advertising and gave prominence to social issues.^[4] He also entered a printing and publishing partnership with William Briddon, which ended in 1888.^[8] The venture was not financially successful and Shelton relied on income from managing the Ventnor Vegetarian Hotel, which attracted vegetarians visiting from Manchester and London, and later hosted Mahatma Gandhi.^[4]

Shelton later moved to Ely, Cambridgeshire. He shifted his attention towards business and church affairs and became less involved in organised vegetarian propaganda, while remaining connected to the Cambridge Vegetarian Society. Local perceptions of the society sometimes characterised its members as "freaks and fanatics".^[4]

From 1893 to 1905, Shelton was in partnership with John P. Tibbitts as Shelton and Tibbitts, publishing and printing local works. Publications included Gems of Ely Cathedral (1900) and the Ely Red Book (1894). Shelton also produced local postcards, including views of the Soldiers' Memorial in Ely Cathedral.^[9]

Around the age of 50 Shelton became a seer for the Trustees of the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion, holding the position into the 1930s. Shelton and his wife continued to promote vegetarianism; she wrote a regular column for The Vegetarian, and Shelton attended cookery attended cookery lessons as part of his advocacy.^[4]

Shelton died in Rayleigh, Essex, on 1 April 1944, aged 88.^[10][11] Shelton was profiled in The Vegetarian Messenger (1935) and his obituary appeared in Vegetarian News.^[4]

• "19 letters from E. Dolby and Percy Shelton to Oscar Browning, 1900–1912". ArchiveSearch. University of Cambridge.
• "1931 letter to Shelton from Gandhi" (PDF). Gandhipedia.
• "1891: A walk on Ventnor Downs with Gandhi" (PDF). Ventnor Heritage Centre. November 2021.