ANIMAL INDUSTRIES 233 



counties comprised in this district with the main val- 

 ley of the Genesee Eiver as the center of production. 

 The former large development of the industry of 

 sheep-raising in New York was not confined to these 

 districts. Sheep were kept in large numbers -in every 

 county. One may surmise that this wide distribu- 

 tion had some relation to the fact that the spinning 

 and weaving of woolen garments were then a home 

 art and that the wool came from the farm flock. 



The introduction of pure-breed sheep began about 

 the same time as that of Shorthorn cattle, 1790-1795. 

 The first Merino sheep were two ewes and a ram im- 

 ported to Boston by William Foster in 1793 and by 

 him presented to a friend in the Pawling Valley, 

 Dutchess County. Not knowing their value, they 

 were killed for meat. Eobert Livingston introduced 

 four head of pure blood Merino sheep into the Hudson 

 Valley in 1801 that had a very large influence on the 

 sheep in that locality. The Southdown was brought 

 into Fayette, Lewis County, by Dr. Rose in 1803. 

 Other first American introductions were the Cots- 

 wold, by C. Dunn near xVlbany in 1823, and the 

 Cheviots at Delhi by Robert Young in 1838. In the 

 first part of that century, New York offered a pre- 

 mium of $50 to any person bringing a Merino ram 

 into a county. About the same time the State agreed 

 to loan $5000 to any person who would establish a 

 woolen factory, and a premium of $150 was offered 

 for the best two yards of woolen cloth. In 1828, 

 tariff protection on wool was demanded. 



An incomplete register of sheep in New York 



