John Bean was born in Attercliffe, Ontario, on September 8, 1901. He attended Stratford Collegiate Institute in Ontario and Northwestern College before transferring to the University of Michigan, where he earned his degrees and spent the rest of this life doing research and teaching for 28 years. John became a world leader in the field of oxygen poisoning, particularly during the Second World War, when the subject had extensive applications in undersea operations. He left a generous bequest in his will to the City of Thorold for the beautification of the Battle of Beaverdams Park.