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It
is very difficult to describe the history of the “AMERAUCANA” breed to
everyone’s satisfaction. Some would say that it is “America’s NEWEST
breed”, emphasizing its most recent developments; but that description
overlooks and would deny the long history of the bearded muffed tailed blue
egg layers that existed long before adoption of the ABA and APA
Standards for “AMERAUCANAS”, when such birds were being raised and shown as
one type of “ARAUCANA”, going back to imports from southern Chile in the
1930’s. But in spite of its long history, it is correct and accurate
to say that the “AMERAUCANA” is “America’s
most newly recognized APA/ABA Standard Breed.”
As
you may know, a breed is NOT a BREED until the APA or ABA
say it’s a “BREED”. For those who may not know the breed
characteristics, “Ameraucanas” are first and foremost BLUE EGG
layers. They MUST have “pea combs”, and be bearded and muffed and tailed, and
CANNOT have any tufts. They also MUST have slate blue legs, and red ear
lobes (females pale). There has been a definite relationship established
between the “Pea Comb” gene and the “Blue Egg” gene. Both these genes have
been shown to be carried on the same chromosome, and thus closely related.
No
history of the “Ameraucana” could be complete without understanding some of
the history of the “Araucana” breed. But one should first understand that
the “Araucana” as we know it, was never a “pure” breed, even in Chile.
To
generalize the situation as briefly as possible; going back Prior to the
arrival of the Spaniards, the Mapuche Indians in Chile had TWO breeds
of chickens raised in different areas of the country: One they called the
“Collonca”, which was small, laid BLUE eggs, rumpless, and had a small
single comb; the other they called the “Quetro” or “Quetero”, derived from
their word “kerto” meaning stammering, referring to its peculiar crow. The
“Quetro” was TUFTED, had a flowing tail, pea comb, and laid brown
eggs --- “Tufted rumpless” occurred when a rumpless bird crossed with a
tufted tailed bird, but these offspring were rare. The latter were later
called “Collonca de Arêtes” by the Spanish, meaning “Collonca with EARRINGS”.
These “Collonca de Arêtes” were blue egg layers, since the blue egg gene is
dominant.
In
1556, the Mapuche Indians were attacked again by the Spanish, and an epic
poem named “La Araucana”, was written by Alonso de Ercilla about their
bravery. This name later stuck with the Indians, and subsequently with
their chickens. The name derives from the Gulf
of Arauco, near Conception, Chile.
Dr.
Rueben Bustos, a chicken expert in Chile,
had himself developed a strain of the so-called “Collonca de Arêtes”,
and wrote about the Araucana in his country, in 1914. But these breeds
remained quite unknown to the world until Professor Salvador Castello, a
Spanish poultry expert, who had observed and photographed some “Collonca de
Arêtes” at an exhibition in Santiago in 1914, later reported on these birds
in 1921 in a paper to the First World’s Poultry Congress in the Hague
(Holland), causing a flurry of excitement throughout the poultry world.
Prof. Castello did not realize at that time that the “breed” that he had
seen and described was NOT native fowl, as he had been told by Dr. Bustos,
but rather were the product of Dr. Bustos’ many years of selective
breeding. Professor Castello later corrected himself in 1924 – but by then
the wave of interest in these birds had already begun, and many erroneous
ideas had already developed, based upon the original 1921 paper, which was
erroneous. [Many of these erroneous ideas are still in circulation today.]
Many
persons since then have devoted an enormous amount of time investigating
the origin of these Pre-Colombian chickens and the blue egg gene. Their
papers are available and are VERY interesting. They generally illustrate
that many of the characteristics of these chickens are apparently of ASIAN
(Trans-Pacific) origin.
The
first description of the Araucana to be published in this country was done
by John Robinson in the Reliable Poultry Journal of 1923, with photos
showing tufted rumpless birds. Later, in 1925, Mr. Keller of the Pratt
Experimental Farm in Pennsylvania wrote
about his small flock – the first Araucana imported to the USA.
The earliest imports were mostly of selected rumpless and tufted varieties.
Later imports were made up of “Araucana” of all types, among which were
bearded muffed tailed varieties, all of which then were bred here in the USA.
All of these were at that time labeled “Araucana”.
Of
special importance to the Ameraucana history is that a shipwreck of a
Chilean freighter many decades ago, in the Western Isles of Scotland,
established there a type of blue egg layer from Chile, which were tailed,
bearded and muffed, and these birds became the forbearer for the
birds now recognized as the Standard “ARAUCANA” in Britain and Australia.
These vary only little from our present “AMERAUCANA” Standard. Some
of these birds at times reportedly produce tufts, and also rumplessness,
showing the possibility of the presence of regressive traits with some of
these genes.
Responding
to a general “Araucana fever”, due to their promotions for “Easter Egg”
chickens, and false and wildly exaggerated claims about the extra
healthfulness of Araucana eggs, commercial hatcheries expanded a frantic
effort to outcross blue egg laying “Araucana” with everything else, and
sell them as “Araucana”, when they were nothing more than mongrels (which
sales are still continuing today). However, there were a number of
dedicated breeders who attempted to keep what they each viewed as the
“original Araucana” from becoming extinct, and various groups formed, but
each had their own idea of what a “Standard Araucana” should be. AMONG THEM
WERE BEARDED MUFFED TAILED TYPES, but these were far from being
standardized.
Prior
to 1976, there were breeders specializing and developing BOTH the tufted
rumpless type of “Araucana” and the bearded muffed and tailed type (and
everything in between), but efforts were made by a few dedicated breeders
to standardize their own preferred varieties of “Araucana”, and each sought
adoption of their OWN version of a Standard for an “Araucana” breed. This
proved to be VERY contentious, and set the stage for much misunderstanding
and ill-feelings, which unfortunately is continuing today in some areas.
Leading up to that recent period, bearded muffed and tailed blue egg layers
were being advertised in the Poultry Press some thirty-eight years ago, as
“Araucana”, and being shown and awarded as “Araucana”. ABC Charter Member
Harry Cook, of New Jersey, had been working with what later came to be
“Ameraucanas: since prior to 1960, and Harry generated letters between the
ABC and Clarence Begler who bred bearded and muffed “Araucana” even prior
to that, more than 44 years ago. Mike Gilbert also had written, “Back when
I was experimenting with various Araucana stocks, birds were produced with BOTH
tufts and muffs, but the lethal factor associated with the ear tufts
resulted in their selective elimination…” Regardless of other
characteristics, the Araucana and the Ameraucana are BOTH distinguished
from other poultry by being layers of BLUE EGGS, unique among
chickens, and sought after primarily for that reason.
Responding
to such breeding efforts with the “Araucana”, and the very widespread
contention, and in order to attempt to define just what was an “Araucana”
(as it was being developed in this country), the APA in 1974, under the
direction of Pres. John Freeman, entered the fray. For the 1975 APA
Convention in Pomona, CA,
the Araucana breeders were invited to present their case, and a “Qualifying
Meet” was set up. They were represented by a group called “Action for
Araucana”, and this group presented FOUR different proposed Standards to
the APA, but NOT ONE could be accepted because NONE of the “Standards”
conformed to even ONE of the types present there to be “qualified”, which
birds also were ALL DIFFERENT. The Judges then followed the only guide they
had, Mr. Robinson’s 1924 description. The APA Standards Revision Committee
was then directed to proceed to develop a Standard for “Araucana”.
Two
years later in 1976, the APA accepted the description recommended by the
Standard Revision Committee, which required “ARAUCANAS” to be tufted and
rumpless, similar to Dr. Bustos’ developed strain of “Collonca de Arêtes”,
thereafter formally DISQUALIFYING all birds formerly shown as “Araucana”
which were bearded, muffed, and tailed. This action was not greeted with universal
acclaim and was denounced by those breeders who had favored the bearded
muffed tailed types. Even after adoption of that Standard, the “American
Araucana Breeder’s Association” was still attempting in 1977 to get
acceptance of an APA Standard that would include BOTH tufted and bearded,
rumpless and tailed. But that organization soon folded, without
success. As should be clear by now, all the arguments about what was the
“original” Araucana were just so much nonsense and misunderstanding, and
continues much so today, as there never was any such “pure” breed. The new
“Araucana Standard” clearly was adopted as a “GOAL” to be achieved in
future breeding; as no such proven “type” had yet been “qualified”.
After
the adoption of the APA “Araucana” Standard in 1976, those breeders who had
been carefully breeding and improving the bearded muffed types of
“Araucana”, were out in the cold, ruled “out” for exhibit as no longer
“Araucana”. Nevertheless those bearded types were continuing to be shown,
as “Araucana” – sometimes as “American Araucana”. Events leading to the
development of the “AMERAUCANA” Standard, and the Ameraucana Bantam Club
(Now Ameraucana Breeder’s Club) had commenced well prior to that 1976
action when the late Jack Bulette, an ABA Director, suggested to Don
Cable of Orangevale, California, a suburb of Sacramento, that he do
something about that mixed up state of the “Araucana” breed. Don was at
that time a seventh-grade science teacher in Orangevale,
a baseball coach and manager, a breeder and exhibitor of various breeds of
poultry, including pigeons and cage birds, and a member of various poultry
clubs. Don saw that development of the tufted rumpless type of “Araucana”
was preceding well in the hands of several individuals, including our mutual
friend, Ralph Strane (now Secretary of the Araucana Club of America).
Ralph had succeeded in developing a strain of white tufted rumpless large
fowl Araucana that were (and ARE) outstanding, and Don Cable then turned
his attention to those bearded muffed tailed blue egg layer bantams, also
being shown then as “Araucana”.
Don
got a trio of bearded tailed bantams from a nearby large flock of
“Araucana”, and began a program to try to achieve a measure of
standardization from those bearded blue egg layers. Don struggled hard to
achieve the desired shank and plumage color with limited success, and
passed several years with great frustration, when in 1977 he happened to
see a photo in the Poultry Press of Mike Gilbert, then living in Iowa,
holding a wheaten bantam pullet with the characteristics that Don had been
seeking. Mike had shown the bird as an “American Araucana” at the Eastern
Iowa Poultry Association Show of which group he was President in 1978. Mike
had been “tinkering” with some bearded blue egg layer bantams in
multi-colors, that he had originally obtained from Marti Hatcheries in Missouri,
and had bred them up to standard varieties, but especially fell in love
with the “wheaten” (shown in Poultry Press). Somehow, Don got his number
and called him and asked about Mike’s stock. Don sent for a trio, and Mike
sent him two pair. Don says, “I was so delighted with the birds that I
began hatching, though late in the season, and was delighted again to find
that they bred true to color.”
Thereafter,
Don and Mike began exchanging letters in which they discussed forming a
club for the purpose of seeking ABA
recognition of this “new breed”. Don offered to serve as interim
Secretary/Treasurer, if Mike would serve as interim President of the
proposed Club, to gather interested breeders together, and hold an
election. Mike was aware of several potential club members, and together
with Jerry Segler, of Illinois,
and Don Cable, they scoured the membership lists of “Araucana” clubs that
they had belonged to, all of which had folded! In the meantime, Mike moved
with his family from Iowa to rural Holmen, in western Wisconsin, to live on
some 40 acres, mostly woodland, which gave him loads of room – 22 miles
north of LaCrosse to which he commuted daily to his accounting business,
until 1982 when he became a fulltime farmer until 1986 (Mike currently
works for the Farm Credit System). Mike sent out the first copy of the
newsletter to prospective members, but insists that “It was really Don’s
persistence that got us off the ground.” UPS and the Postal Service were
really kept in business during that time by the correspondence going back
and forth between California and Wisconsin!!
The
club was formed in the summer of 1978 (so far without a name), with eleven
Charter members, from all points of the country – few, if any, of which
knew each other personally – and even Dorian Roxburgh, Secretary of the
British Araucana Club. Included among these original members was the late
Frank L. Gary, Chairman of the ABA Standard Revision Committee. All these
members had been working independently of each other on the improvement of
the bearded type, but now came together in a common cause – ABA
recognition of their bearded muffed tailed type blue egg layer. The
situation in 1978 was a mixed bag at best. Commercial hatcheries had
continued selling anything that laid an egg other than white as “Araucana”
or “Easter Egg” chickens – and were making outrageous claims about the
superiority of the “Araucana” eggs for higher protein and lower
cholesterol, which were totally FALSE. With the “Araucana fever” that had
developed, everyone wanted to try their hand at this new promotion. But two
former “Araucana” clubs had recently folded due to internal squabbles, and
one had been carrying on a running public feud with the leadership of the
APA in both newsletters and through the Poultry Press. This atmosphere
caused many a serious breeder to bristle at the mention of the “Araucana”,
but the new Club began to organize in the middle of this somewhat hostile
environment.
From
the beginning, the new Club operated on a democratic basis – by majority
vote – and decided to propose at first only the colors wheaten and white.
Some breeders in Oregon
quit when the Club refused to accept mixed colors; the other members
feeling that would be counter-productive. The question of breed name,
weights, shank color, etc. were all put to a VOTE, and those points that
gained the majority of votes were compiled by Mike Gilbert into a proposed
Standard. There was some support for the name “American Araucana”, but the
name “Ameraucana” won out. A proposed Standard was developed in early 1979,
and put to a vote. Mike commented on the results of the vote as follows:
“Thanks to each of you who have participated in making our voting process a
success … We have decided on slate colored shanks by an overwhelming
margin. We have voted for red earlobes by a nearly two to one margin, we
have decided on the weight category calling for 30 oz. mature cock birds,
and we have chosen the name “AMERAUCANA” by a margin of nearly two to one.”
The first election of officers too place soon thereafter, in the fall of
1979, with Don and Mike being elected to the offices that they had held on
an interim basis. The Club then had some 28 members, from eleven states,
and two foreign countries, and was growing!
Now
all were breeding for uniformity and conformance, all to the proposed
“Standard”.
Although
there had been resistance and hostility by some Club members in Oregon,
after they dropped out the organization proceeded smoothly on track. But
there was continued great hostility from outside the Club, and a regular
campaign was conducted by letters in the Poultry Press accusing the Club of
all kinds of skull-duggery – of trying to undermine the fancy, and make a
huge profit by selling stock to unsuspecting newcomers to the fancy. The
correspondence became so heated, that the Poultry Press refused to print
any more letters on the subject until things cooled down. In particular,
Don Cable took a great deal of personal abuse from the opposition, persons
aligned for their own special reasons against the bearded muffed tailed
type of blue egg layers.
By
1979, there were enough wheaten bantams “Ameraucana” in California
to hold an ABA
“qualifying meet” for breed recognition. (Don Cable had continued with his
breeding program, and had shared his stock, now happy with the results.)
In
November 1979, an ABA Qualifying Meet was held with the Golden Gate Club in
Pleasanton, California.
ABA Judge Bill Holland of Idaho
(later to become President of the APA) judged the meet, and reported among
other things that, “The birds were of consistent color and type.”
Bill Holland, along with Jack Bulette, the ABA Director, strongly
recommended acceptance of the “Ameraucana” breed as a Standard. The
following May 1980, The Board of Directors of the ABA
voted unanimously to accept the “Ameraucana” bantam. The proposed Standard
written by Mike Gilbert, based on the members’ voting, and with editing
assistance from Don Cable and others, was accepted by the ABA,
without change. Afterward, Mike wrote, “Our birds now can be shown for the
first time without fear of disqualification as a non-standard type or
breed. We all owe Don Cable a debt of gratitude for the tremendous amount
of energy, dedication, and work which he has selflessly given to our
cause.”
Along
with the summer 1980 newsletter, copies of the Club Constitution, as
ratified by the Board of Directors, were distributed to all members, and
the Club took on a formal existence. The fifth edition of the ABA
Bantam Standard in 1981 carried the complete Standard for the “Ameraucana”
bantam, including the variety descriptions for wheaten and white.
In
1980, “Ameraucanas” were entered under that name officially in various
meets, as reported for the Oct. 4-5, 1980 Show in Viroqua, WI, in which
Mike Gilbert, Bernard Kellogg and Jerry Segler were the “Ameraucana”
winners.
The
first ABC NATIONAL MEET was held November 28-30, 1980 in Bluegrass,
Iowa, sponsored by the Eastern
Iowa Poultry Association, with Jerry Segler and Ron Klemmedson winning all.
(Mike Gilbert was suddenly unable to attend). Jerry’s whites had been
outstanding. The “Ameraucana Bantam Club” continued to grow and by 1982,
when the Club handbook was published, it listed 36 members from all areas
of the country, but somewhat concentrated in Wisconsin
and California.
Included as a member, was Bill Holland, later President of the APA. Also in
1982, Jeanette Frank, later to become our President, Secretary/Treasurer
and Editor, joined the ABC, with Don Cable noting, “Jeanette received her
start in Ameraucanas from Jack Fugate of Tennessee,
and she has wheaten. She is our first member from the State of Montana,
and the third from the Rocky Mountain States.”
John Blehm, from Birch Run, Michigan,
had also joined by that time. The Breeders’ Directory listed 20 active
BREEDERS.
The
2nd ABC NATIONAL MEET was held on January 30-31, 1982 in Santa
Rosa, CA at the
Pacific Poultry Breeders Association “California National”. Twenty
Ameraucanas were shown by three members, all in wheaten bantams, and Don
Cable carried the day. Five members were present. In the summer of 1982,
the Poultry Press carried an article written by Cathy Brunson, President of
the Araucana Club of America,
in which she called for more cooperation and mutual understanding among ALL
breeders of blue egg fowl. Don Cable wrote her a congratulatory letter, and
received a warm reply.
Don
Cable and the Ameraucanas had taken quite a lot of brickbats in the poultry
journals over the years as mentioned previously – Jeanette Frank once wrote
that she had been told by an APA/ABA judge that “he would NEVER place an
AMERAUCANA, as they are nothing but out-crossed Araucana.” I, myself, have
had similar experiences, when six years ago I pointed out to an APA/ABA
judge at a Connecticut
show that the bird that he had just awarded a “blue” to as an “Araucana”
was bearded and muffed and tailed, and thus disqualified as an “Araucana”.
His reply was that “the term ‘Araucana’ doesn’t mean anything more than a
blue egg layer”. Then in Columbus, Ohio, at the 1994 APA National, when I
observed that the judge had awarded a “blue” to a large fowl black
“Ameraucana”, with yellow legs, I pointed out to the judges that yellow
legs are a disqualification – and that prompted a loud general discussion
among them and others – I overheard a comment that “These Ameraucanas
shouldn’t even be allowed in the Show – they’re nothing but bastardized
Araucana.” This is stated here just to illustrate how ignorance and
ill-feeling persists still today!
The
Ameraucana Bantam Club published its fine “Handbook” for members at the end
of 1982, with details about the breed and the Club, and listing 36 members.
Additional varieties were then being developed, largely by breeders in the
upper Midwest. Enough progress had been
made by 1983 to attempt to qualify six additional varieties with the ABA
and to try to qualify the breed (bantams only) in all eight varieties with
the APA. The site chosen was the first-ever APA/ABA joint meet in Columbus,
Ohio in November, 1983.
Going
into that meet, the Club had 38 members on record. For that Qualifying
Meet, Affidavits had to be submitted from not less that five (5) breeders
“stating that they had bred the breed for not less than five (5) years,
producing not less than 50% of all specimens true to type, color, size, and
comb.” Don Cable, Mike Gilbert, Jerry Segler, Jaime Ikeda, Bernard Kellogg,
John Wunderlich, Bill Wenger, and Harry Cook all supplied the required
documentation. This demonstrated a great record of success and consistency
in “Ameraucana” breeding. But they knew that they were facing a rather
hostile reception in some circles. As Don Cable has written, “Where opposition
to acceptance by the ABA
had been vocal and obvious, we were to find our opposition in the APA more
subtle, among a very few key officials.”
That
1983 APA/ABA Nation Meet turned out to be the LARGEST poultry show EVER
held in the USA,
up to then, with some 10,400 entries by 717 exhibitors. Six Club members
attended and exhibited 75 Ameraucana bantams. Those members were Don Cable,
who flew in from California with his birds in a converted steamer trunk;
Jerry Segler, Illinois; John Wunderlich, Missouri; Bernard Kellogg, Dave
Horman, and Mike Gilbert from Wisconsin; John Fugate, Tennessee; Ray
Gwynes, Georgia; Frank Gary, New Jersey; and Bill Holland, Idaho. Jerry
Segler had the largest entry.
The
1983 Show was the first time that Don Cable had net Mike Gilbert and Frank
Gary personally, as well as the others there, after all those years working
together! The Ameraucanas made quite a hit at the show, and all the present
varieties, except buff, were shown. Later Don Cable would write, “When we
began to put the Ameraucana breed together and standardize the various
points such as lobe and shank color, overall size and type, etc., it seemed
as though it was an almost impossible task, particularly since we as
breeders were scattered across the continent, and cooperation, much less
coordination, was hit and miss at best. In spite of those obstacles, when
we met in Ohio
for our qualifying meet, the uniformity of the breed, gathered from
all parts of the nation for the first time, was absolutely uncanny!
The
ABA almost
immediately informed the Club of the acceptance of the additional
varieties, including “buff” (which hadn’t even been shown). Those varieties
being: White, Wheaten, Black, Blue, Blue Wheaten, Brown red, Buff and
Silver.
Fred
Jeffery, Secretary/Treasurer of the ABA,
and Frank Gary, Chairman of the Standard Revision Committee were extremely
cooperative at every step of the qualifying process. By vote of the Club
Board of Directors, Frank L. Gary was named our first Honorary
Vice-President, and was presented with a plaque of appreciation.
Unfortunately,
the APA was not as responsive as the ABA.
Although Don Cable and Mike Gilbert waited throughout the APA general
meeting for news of the qualification results, no mention was made of the
“Ameraucanas”, and when they inquired where they could find the Standard
Committee Chairman, it turned out that he had already flown home, with the
records.
Many
letters followed, some of which were far less than cordial, and more
telephone calls! Finally, at the termination of the next APA National the
following year in Wisconsin, Mike Gilbert was present to hear the great
news, and Don received a letter from the APA President that the APA Board
of Directors had voted unanimously to accept the ‘AMERAUCANA” Standard,
approving the acceptance of all eight varieties of the bantams, AND THE
SAME VARIETIES IN THE LARGE FOWL AS WELL. As Don wrote later, “the
officers of the APA had acted in a fair and responsible way, and they have
my thanks and support as a member.”
After
the numbness wore off, the Club was astounded, as they had done nothing to
promote the large fowl acceptance, though Mike Gilbert had been working
since 1981 with the APA on the possibility of accepting our “Ameraucana
Standard” (for bantams only). However, Tom Lippencott, from Ohio
who headed the “Araucana Boosters Club” had promoted a similar breed to the
APA for acceptance in Large Fowl, but under a different proposed Standard
and under a different name. The APA acted on this initiative, but accepted
the name and standards of our Ameraucana Bantam Club.
This
action completed the efforts to gain acceptance of the AMERAUCANA breed
officially, and the breed and the Ameraucana Bantam Club were off and running!
Shortly thereafter, our Board of Directors voted to change the name of the
Club to the “AMERAUCANA BREEDERS CLUB”, to recognize the inclusion of Large
Fowl to the breed. And thus concludes the early history of the breed and
the Club.
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