DEVELOPMENT OF THE RHODE ISLAND RED 



AUTHENTIC HISTORY OF THIS POPULAR VARIETY— REDS PRODUCED BY FIFTY 

 YEARS OF OUTBREEDING— THE RED MALAY FOWL A SOLID RED VARIETY- 

 EARLY BREEDERS WHO HELPED MAKE THE REDS-NAMING THE BREED 



WILLIAM C. DENNY 



IN THE HISTORY of Standard-bred poultry, not a 

 single breed or variety has met with such universal 

 favor or has been bred as extensively in so short a 

 period of time as the Rhode Island Red. It matters 

 not whether the show be held in Portland, Me., or Portland, 

 Oregon, you will find a good exhibit of "The Indians of the 

 hen family" with their rich brilliant red plumage, set off 

 with a lustrous deep black tail to attract the eye; if you are 

 buying brown eggs in Boston, or dressed fowl in Seattle, you 

 will hear of their vigor, winter laying and early maturity. 

 You may then begin to wonder where this extraordinary 

 breed came from and how it originated. 



The district surrounding Little Compton, Newport 

 County, R. I., and Fall River, Bristol County, Mass. (adjoin- 

 ing territory), is entitled to the credit for producing Rhode 

 Island Reds. Practical poultry raising has been a profit- 

 able business with the thrifty farmers of this section for 

 many years. With them the value of fowls was measured 

 by the number of eggs they would produce and the returns 

 they would bring when dressed and sent to market. Shape 

 and color had little- if any consideration, excepting that there 

 was a decided preference for males with red plumage. This 

 preference became so widespread and the use of red males 

 so general, that without being conscious of it, these poultry 

 keepers really made the Rhode Island Red. 



The precise origin of the Rhode Island Red will always 

 remain more or less obscure. It will never be known exactly 

 what breeds were responsible for its production, as for forty 

 years previous to its being recognized as a distinct breed, it 

 was a race of fowls produced by poultry farmers who had 

 no definite ideas in regard to breeding for form or feather. 

 The Red Shanghais, Cochin Chinas, Red Chittagongs, Black 

 Breasted Red Malays and Red Malay or Wild Indian Fowl 

 have in turn been credited with being instrumental in pro- 

 ducing this breed, but it is quite certain that none of these 

 alone is entitled to this distinction. It is doubtful if the 

 names of these different breeds were correctly applied by 

 the pioneer poultry keepers who were breeding poultry solely 

 for eggs and meat. The names Cochin China and Malay 

 being better known, were in all likeli'hqod favored and re- 

 ceived credit that in many instances belonged to the Shang- 

 hais and Chittagongs. It is also likely, beyond doubt, that 

 at least two distinct breeds were known as Malays. 



The Ked Malay Fowl 



The Red Malay as it was called by many was also known 

 as the Malay or Wild Indian fowl. It could not be said 

 that this was a variety of, or that it was in any way related 

 to, the breed now recognized as Black Breasted Red Malay 

 Games. Recently Dr. P. T. Woods saw and photographed 

 a specimen of this variety (the Red Malay) in the museum 

 of the Peabody Academy of Science, East India Marine 

 Hall, Salem, Mass. This specimen was brought alive to 

 this country from Malay about the year 1846 by Captain 

 Richard Wheatland. The illustration made from photos of 

 this specimen proves that the Red Malay, or Wild Indian 

 fowl, did exist and also that it was a distinct breed which 



10 



could not possibly be confused with any other. This speci- 

 men had a short strong neck, a rather long slender body 

 with a round full breast, a medium sized, well furnished tail, 

 rather long thighs and shanks, a short round head with a 

 cruel expression and a small pea comb. In color it was a 

 rich red including solid red tail and wings, excepting the 

 first two primary feathers on one wing which were part white. 

 Under-color was slate and in some sections almost black. 



This Red Malay, in all probability, was also known as 

 the Buff Malay and was the breed that was largely res- 

 ponsible for fixing the color in Rhode Island Reds. It is 

 generally conceded, however, that each one of the above 

 five named breeds was a factor in mating the Reds. Evi- 

 dence of this is found in many instances and includes the 

 fact that time after time the three styles of combs have been 

 found in flocks that have been kept for egg production or as 

 market fowl, the single comb showing its ancestry principally 

 in the Cochin China, the rose comb in the Black Breasted 

 Red Malay and the pea comb in the Chittagong and Wild 

 Indian. Strong evidence of the use of Malay blood is also 

 indicated in the wheaten color found in many Rhode Island 

 Red females, even down to the present time. For a long 

 time, evidence of the Cochin China was found in Rhode 

 Island Red females having pronounced cushions and loose 

 Cochin feathering. 



Little Evidence- of Leghorn Blood 



There is very little evidence that Brown Leghorns were 

 largely used in producing Rhode Island Reds, excepting that 

 there were occasional flocks with considerable Leghorn blood 

 where red males were introduced. The late Dr. Aldrich, 

 after careful personal investigation, in his notes on the 

 origin of the Reds which were published in the Rhode Island 

 Experiment Station report for 1901 writes: 



"In the Tiverton country the Reds were not rose comb, 

 but single, and were called Malays more often than they 

 were called Rhode Island Reds. These Reds had no sug- 

 gestion of Leghorn blood in them. The rose comb Rhode 

 Island Reds now in Tiverton were obtained from Little 

 Compton. At Westport (head of river) the Reds looked 

 'Leghorny.' There was, no doubt, some rose comb Leghorn 

 blood in some of the flocks. At Central Village, the Rhode 

 Island Reds were rose and single comb, and were bred in 

 large numbers by Mr. Booth and Mr. Kirby (both of whom 

 are now dead) and others, between central Village, Hick's 

 Bridge and Westport Point. At Little Compton there were 

 rose and single comb Rhode Island Reds. I have no doubt 

 the rose comb came from the rose comb Shanghai- cook rather 

 than from any Wyandotte or rose comb Leghorn blood, 

 although the latter could occasionally be seen quite plainly. 

 Very Httle Wyandotte blood could be found, introduced 

 from cockerels raised by Fred Bowen of Fall River, but the 

 rose comb, I am sure, antedated any introduction of Wyan- 

 dotte or Leghorn blood, that is, in the neighborhood of 

 Little Compton (south shore)." 



Rhode Island Reds were originally known as the 

 "William Tripp" or "John Macomber" fowl. On the sub- 

 ject Captain Benjamin E. Tripp of New Bedford, son of 

 William Tripp, in a letter under date of January 17, 1900, 

 also published in the Rhode Island Experiment Station 

 report for 1901 writes: 



