James Caleb Jackson (March 28, 1811 – July 11, 1895) was an American

nutritionist A nutritionist is a person who advises others on matters of food and nutrition and their impacts on health. Some people specialize in particular areas, such as sports nutrition, public health, or animal nutrition, among other disciplines. In many ...

and the inventor of the first dry,

whole grain A whole grain is a grain of any cereal and pseudocereal that contains the endosperm, germ, and bran, in contrast to refined grains, which retain only the endosperm. As part of a general healthy diet, consumption of whole grains is associated ...

breakfast cereal Cereal, formally termed breakfast cereal (and further categorized as cold cereal or warm cereal), is a traditional breakfast food made from processed cereal grains. It is traditionally eaten as part of breakfast, or a snack food, primarily in We ...

which he called

Granula Granula was the first manufactured breakfast cereal. It was invented by James Caleb Jackson in 1863. Granula could be described as being a larger and tougher version of the somewhat similar later cereal Grape-Nuts. Granula, however, consisted prim ...

. His views influenced the health reforms of

Ellen G. White Ellen Gould White (née Harmon; November 26, 1827 – July 16, 1915) was an American woman author and co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Along with other Adventist leaders such as Joseph Bates and her husband James White, she wa ...

, a founder of the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

Biography

Jackson was born in Manlius,

Onondaga County Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. Onondaga County is the core of the Syracuse, NY MSA. History The name ''Onondaga'' derives from ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, to James and Mary Ann Elderkin Jackson. After completing his education at Chittenango Polytechnic Institute, he worked as a farmer until 1838. He married Lucretia Edgerton Brewster when he was 19 years old. In his early life, Jackson was active as an

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

. He lectured for the

Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society The Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, headquartered in Boston, was organized as an auxiliary of the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1835. Its roots were in the New England Anti-Slavery Society, organized by William Lloyd Garrison, editor of ' ...

, becoming the society's secretary in 1840. From 1844, he moved into journalism, buying the abolitionist newspaper the ''Albany Patriot'' with Abel Brown. Jackson managed and wrote for the paper until 1847, when his failing health forced him to retire. Jackson had been troubled with poor health throughout his life, but he experienced a remarkable recovery after taking a 'water cure' at a spa operated by Silas O. Gleason, the Greenwood Spring Water Cure in

Cuba, New York Cuba is a town on the western border of Allegany County, New York, United States. The village of Cuba lies within its borders. The federally recognized tribe of Seneca Native Americans has a reservation on the western town line. As of the 202 ...

, in 1846–1847. As a result, he spent the second half of his life as an advocate for

hydropathy Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment. The term ...

, training to become a

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

and opening a hydropathic institute at Glen Haven on

Skaneateles Lake Skaneateles Lake ( , ) is one of the Finger Lakes in central New York in the United States. The name ''Skaneateles'' means ''long lake'' in one of the local Iroquoian languages. The lake is sometimes referred to as "The Roof Garden of the Lakes" ...

Cortland County, New York Cortland County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population of Cortland County was 46,809. The county seat is Cortland. The county is named after Pierre Van Cortlandt, president of the convention at ...

, in 1847. In 1858, he took over the 'Our Home Hygienic Institute' at Dansville,

Livingston County, New York Livingston County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 61,834. Its county seat is Geneseo. The county is named after Robert R. Livingston, who helped draft the Declaration of Independence and ...

. The spa had been founded by Nathaniel Bingham on the site of a

mineral water Mineral water is water from a mineral spring that contains various minerals, such as salts and sulfur compounds. Mineral water may usually be still or sparkling (carbonated/effervescent) according to the presence or absence of added gases. T ...

spring some four years earlier. Under Jackson's management, the spa grew to become one of the largest in the world, catering to around 20,000 patients, and was renamed 'Our Home on the Hillside'. Jackson was assisted by his wife, known as "Mother Jackson", and their adopted daughter, Dr. Harriet Newell Austin. The health resort was a Jackson family operation for many years; James Hathaway Jackson (son of James Caleb Jackson) and James Arthur Jackson (son of James Hathaway Jackson and grandson of James Caleb Jackson) were both leaders of the facility. The family referred to it as the

Jackson Sanatorium Jackson Sanatorium (also known as, Our Home on the Hillside, Home Hygienic Institute, Jackson Health Resort) was a historical mineral spa in Dansville, Livingston County, New York, attracted many prominent people to Dansville for the water cure. Op ...

by 1890; the establishment was also known as the Jackson Health Resort. Along with water cures, Jackson believed that diet was fundamental in improving health. Over time, he removed

red meat In gastronomy, red meat is commonly red when raw and a dark color after it is cooked, in contrast to white meat, which is pale in color before and after cooking. In culinary terms, only flesh from mammals or fowl (not fish) is classified a ...

from the

menu In a restaurant, the menu is a list of food and beverages offered to customers and the prices. A menu may be à la carte – which presents a list of options from which customers choose – or table d'hôte, in which case a pre-established seque ...

at the spa and ruled out tea, coffee,

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

, and tobacco. Jackson was a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetariani ...

Forward, Charles W. (1898). ''Fifty Years of Food Reform: A History of the Vegetarian Movement in England''. London: The Ideal Publishing Union. p. 66 and promoted a vegetarian diet with emphasis on

fruits In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

, vegetables, and unprocessed grains. Jackson believed his diet could cure intemperance and

masturbation Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrators, or combinat ...

.Mrozek, Donald J. (1987). ''The Scientific Quest for Physical Culture and the Persistent Appeal of Quackery''. ''Journal of Sport History'' 14 (1): 76-86. Although accepting the use of surgery, he opposed

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalati ...

. Jackson was opposed to

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...

in any circumstance, describing it as "among the greatest crimes". In 1863, he developed the first

and named it

. Jackson died on July 11, 1895 in

Dansville, Livingston County, New York Dansville is a village in the town of North Dansville, with a small northern part in the town of Sparta in Livingston County, in western New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the village population was 4,433. The village is named after ...

Publications

* 1822 ''Morning Watches'' * 1853 ''Hints on the Reproductive Organs: Their Diseases, Causes, and Cure on Hydropathic Principles'' * 1862 ''Consumption: How to Prevent It, and How to Cure It'' * 186
''The Sexual Organism, and Its Healthful Management''
* 186
''Dancing: Its Evils and Its Benefits''
* 1870 ''American Womanhood: Its Peculiarities and Necessities'' * 187
''How to Treat the Sick Without Medicine''
* 1872 ''The Training of Children'' * 1872 ''The Debilities of Our Boys'' * 1875 ''Christ as a Physician'' * 187

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, James 1811 births 1895 deaths 19th-century American inventors Activists from New York (state) American abolitionists American anti-abortion activists American health and wellness writers American nutritionists American Seventh-day Adventists American temperance activists American vegetarianism activists Anti-smoking activists Christian abolitionists Hydrotherapists Orthopaths People from Dansville, New York People from Manlius, New York Seventh-day Adventists in health science Tea critics

Biography

Publications

See also

References

External links