24 BULLETIN 94, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
THE DORSET HORN. 
The Dorset Horn 7 like the Southdown, is an extremely old breed 
that has been developed largely through selection. For several 
centuries there had existed in the county of Dorset in southern Eng- 
land a type of sheep that were coarse, small, and light of carcass, 
especially in fore quarters, but with broad, deep loins. They had 
dark noses and both sexes were horned. In Somerset was a larger, 
lankier type, producing longer wool and noted for their large lambs. 
They had white faces and pink noses. These types were probably 
the ancestors of the Dorset Horn. 
Little improvement was wrought in this breed until near the middle 
of the last century, and as mentioned in the preceding paragraph 
this improvement was effected through well-directed selection. 
Crossing was tried by a few breeders with both the Devonshire Knots 
and the Leicesters, but the attempts to introduce foreign blood 
resulted in failure. 
Not a little credit for the latter development of this breed is due to 
Richard Seymour, of Bradpole, who began improving his flock about 
1830. Mathew Paul, of Burstock, was another early Dorset breeder 
of prominence. 
Although the sheep of Dorset and Somerset have long been recog- 
nized as distinct in type from those of surrounding counties, they 
were not assigned a place as a separate' breed until 1862, when they 
were shown as such at the Royal at Battersea. 
The stronghold of the Dorset Horn is still in its native district of 
Dorset, Somerset, and Devon. In the former two counties it is the 
predominant breed. The section about Dorchester and the Isle of 
Wight possess many flocks of marked excellence. Small flocks are 
scattered over England, Scotland, and Ireland, but their distribution 
does not approach that of the more popular down breeds. They 
have also been exported to the Continent and to America. 
It is said that Dorset Horn sheep were first introduced into Virginia 
prior to 1882, but information as to where the shipment was made 
and who made it is lacking. Some representatives of this breed were 
shown at the fat stock show at Chicago in 1885, and two years later 
William Davey, of Lockport, N. Y., purchased some individuals of 
this breed from Valency E. Fuller, of Canada. The same year direct 
importations were made from Great Britain by A. Thayer, of Hoosick 
Falls, and E. F. Boroditch, of Massachusetts. In 1889 ? T. S. Cooper, 
of Pennsylvania, made a large importation, consisting of 153 head. 
Dorsets can be found to-day in at least 32 States of the Union. 
New York, Ohio, Illinois, West Virginia, Massachusetts, Pennsyl- 
vania, Indiana, and New Jersey, in the order named, have the largest 
number of purebred flocks, and most of the other flocks are to be found 
in the eastern half of the country. 
