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Who’s Who in Food
Culinary Personalities

• Who's Who: G-H-I • Galbani, Egidio • Gasparini • Gilbert, Phileas • Girod, Tony • Goldman, Sylvan • Good, Phyllis Pellman • Goodnight, Charles • Graham, Sylvester • Green, Nancy • Greenwald, George • Grey, Charles, 2nd Earl • Haeterick, Robert • Handwerker, Nathan • Haraszthy de Mokcsa, Agoston • Hardart, Frank • Head, Mr. Potato • Hearn, Lafcadio • Heliogabalus • Hellman, Richard • Harvey, Frederick Henry • Hires, Charles Elmer • Hormel, George A. • Horn, Joe • Huou • Ilitch, Mike • Ingram, E. W.

Sylvester Graham

(July 5, 1794 - Sept. 11, 1851)

Inventor of Graham flour, bread and crackers (1829). Graham was an American Presbyterian minister who mainly preached nutrition and wanted to reform the eating habits of America and the world. He advocated vegetarianism and the use of only coarse, whole grain flour and railed against meat, potatoes, tobacco and alcohol, coffee and tea, chocolate and pastries.

He was hated and sometimes attacked by butchers and bakers, liquor and tobacco companies. He wanted Americans to eat fruits and vegetables; stop wearing corsets; sleep on hard beds, take cold baths daily, and weekly warm baths; and above all eat bread made with only whole grain, unrefined wheat flour.

According to Larousse Gastronomique (1984) Graham bread was the first internationally consumed bread. Many of his ideas on diet have been proven correct and widely accepted.