The Heritage Rhode Island Red Site

[radams]

You are correct radams in your history of Ron's birds. The next question is do you know who the St. Romains got their birds from??? A little bit of RIR history trivia...

Matt

Matt, First of all let me say that I am in awe of your birds. I guess I should have expanded on the history a bit before putting in my 2 cents. Others have already answered your initial challenge to me but here is a bit more info. The line did indeed come from Bob and his Mohawk line which he got from EW Reese which came directly from Mrs Donaldson in the 1960s. Mrs Donaldson got her start from fertilized eggs from Owens Farm in Massachusetts. She purchased a male from Maurice Wallace, which was a champion in Canada, around 1927 for a price of $150 which is alot today and even more back then. From these is where she started the Mohawk line. Bob passed along birds to 3 breeders...St.Romains, Greg Chamness in Illinois and Brian Simmons in Florida. This information came from Bob via Jims website(Thanks Jim). I dont think it goes back any further than this telling where the fertilized eggs or the Champion of Maurice Wallace originated. There is so much information and absorbing it all takes some time. Im still new at this but very motivated. I really enjoy reading about the history of the RIRs since it holds so many fond memories of my childhood at my grand parents. Thanks Matt for getting me to do more research. I may be mistaken, but arent your birds a cross of the Illinois and Florida strains? Think I read that somewhere also. Every time I read I find more interesting facts.

 

[immyjay54]

Matt, First of all let me say that I am in awe of your birds. I guess I should have expanded on the history a bit before putting in my 2 cents. Others have already answered your initial challenge to me but here is a bit more info. The line did indeed come from Bob and his Mohawk line which he got from EW Reese which came directly from Mrs Donaldson in the 1960s. Mrs Donaldson got her start from fertilized eggs from Owens Farm in Massachusetts. She purchased a male from Maurice Wallace, which was a champion in Canada, around 1927 for a price of $150 which is alot today and even more back then. From these is where she started the Mohawk line. Bob passed along birds to 3 breeders...St.Romains, Greg Chamness in Illinois and Brian Simmons in Florida. This information came from Bob via Jims website(Thanks Jim). I dont think it goes back any further than this telling where the fertilized eggs or the Champion of Maurice Wallace originated. There is so much information and absorbing it all takes some time. Im still new at this but very motivated. I really enjoy reading about the history of the RIRs since it holds so many fond memories of my childhood at my grand parents. Thanks Matt for getting me to do more research. I may be mistaken, but arent your birds a cross of the Illinois and Florida strains? Think I read that somewhere also. Every time I read I find more interesting facts.

Matt, First of all let me say that I am in awe of your birds. I guess I should have expanded on the history a bit before putting in my 2 cents. Others have already answered your initial challenge to me but here is a bit more info. The line did indeed come from Bob and his Mohawk line which he got from EW Reese which came directly from Mrs Donaldson in the 1960s. Mrs Donaldson got her start from fertilized eggs from Owens Farm in Massachusetts. She purchased a male from Maurice Wallace, which was a champion in Canada, around 1927 for a price of $150 which is alot today and even more back then. From these is where she started the Mohawk line. Bob passed along birds to 3 breeders...St.Romains, Greg Chamness in Illinois and Brian Simmons in Florida. This information came from Bob via Jims website(Thanks Jim). I dont think it goes back any further than this telling where the fertilized eggs or the Champion of Maurice Wallace originated. There is so much information and absorbing it all takes some time. Im still new at this but very motivated. I really enjoy reading about the history of the RIRs since it holds so many fond memories of my childhood at my grand parents. Thanks Matt for getting me to do more research. I may be mistaken, but arent your birds a cross of the Illinois and Florida strains? Think I read that somewhere also. Every time I read I find more interesting facts.

radams,
If you go to my site and go to the Rhode Island Red information page, at the top of the page you will see two URL's in red. Click on the second one and you will have a whole bunch of reading on the origin etc of the RIR's. I have never read all of it because it is in small print and even for me to magnify it, it is still a little small. If I go into my google books I can enlarge it but I just can't do all that reading, it kills my eyes. lol Hope maybe this helps you out.
Jimmy

 

[radams]

radams,
If you go to my site and go to the Rhode Island Red information page, at the top of the page you will see two URL's in red. Click on the second one and you will have a whole bunch of reading on the origin etc of the RIR's. I have never read all of it because it is in small print and even for me to magnify it, it is still a little small. If I go into my google books I can enlarge it but I just can't do all that reading, it kills my eyes. lol Hope maybe this helps you out.
Jimmy

Thank you so much Jimmy for all the information you have provided. I will get there and read more. So much to learn and so interesting on the history. Those of us that want to keep these lines going are so fortunate to be able to have this information available. I know that I would be a stumbling idiot trying to get a good line a keep it going without the help from you and others here. I will always be in debt.

 

[radams]

Bob did not have the Kittle line of RIR's. He had the Reese line for many years and I believe he had some Underwood birds when he lived in the North but I don't think he had any other lines of Reds.

Matt

Matt. Another thing I just ran across. Bob did indeed have the Underwood line while he was living in Wisconsin. I came across this some time ago while reading this thread from the beginning. That took a few months and is the reason I joined BYC. Anyway, post 1786 from Bob states that he got 5 dozen Underwood eggs about 30 years ago when he lived in Wisconsin and that they were very good stock. He didnt state where he went with that line though. Im sure that he didnt cross them later with his Mohawk line as he would have said so. Bob seemed to be meticulous in his record keeping and history and would not have left that information out if it had occurred. It could have been an experiment he was doing at crossing and it didnt turn out...but now we can only guess. Bob was an invaluable source of information and his wisdom is truly missed.

 

[cmom]

My original birds came from Brian Simmons many years ago. A few years ago I got a quad from Matt. I eventually have phased out the offspring from the birds I got from Brian and am concentrating on a breeding program on my birds and offspring's form the birds I got from Matt. I got another male from Matt and Matt's dad this past January at Lake City, FL. I absolutely love the birds. I have a lot of chicks and am anxious to see how they grow out. When I got the birds from Brian, they were my first pure RIR's. I was hooked. I did take some birds that were the closest to the SOP in my eyes to show but did not place that well. With each breeding season I kept the families separated. I began to show offspring from the birds I got from Matt and started placing much better at the shows. Just a little comparison. I realize that not everyone who raises these fine birds, show them.

 

[cmom]

Quote:
I thought of getting a second line at one point. But his summer I am having second thoughts. I would have to mark the birds from the point of hatch and keep them separate at all times. But with children who like to let the chickens loose I just know it would be a big headache to sort them even if it was not breeding season.

I have one line but different families. I do keep them separated from hatch through adults.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

About the shows, Are there any good judges for the RIR in the central IN area? If so can you pm me about possibly coming out and judging my birds.
There will be no shows in Indiana this year if I read the latest update right. I typically go to a show or two to see the best RIR and make sure to talk to a judge about what to look for up close in my birds. So while I don't show yet, I feel that I do gain information at the shows and I'll be missing that this year. Due to traveling being a big pain out of state shows are not an option.

 

[redrooster99]

I hope yall don't mind me asking but are dominiques or RIR more broody?

 

[redrooster99]

Edited because wrong thread.

 

[Matt1616]

Matt, First of all let me say that I am in awe of your birds. I guess I should have expanded on the history a bit before putting in my 2 cents. Others have already answered your initial challenge to me but here is a bit more info. The line did indeed come from Bob and his Mohawk line which he got from EW Reese which came directly from Mrs Donaldson in the 1960s. Mrs Donaldson got her start from fertilized eggs from Owens Farm in Massachusetts. She purchased a male from Maurice Wallace, which was a champion in Canada, around 1927 for a price of $150 which is alot today and even more back then. From these is where she started the Mohawk line. Bob passed along birds to 3 breeders...St.Romains, Greg Chamness in Illinois and Brian Simmons in Florida. This information came from Bob via Jims website(Thanks Jim). I dont think it goes back any further than this telling where the fertilized eggs or the Champion of Maurice Wallace originated. There is so much information and absorbing it all takes some time. Im still new at this but very motivated. I really enjoy reading about the history of the RIRs since it holds so many fond memories of my childhood at my grand parents. Thanks Matt for getting me to do more research. I may be mistaken, but arent your birds a cross of the Illinois and Florida strains? Think I read that somewhere also. Every time I read I find more interesting facts.

Bob never got birds from E.W. Reese...he got his birds from a lady named Anna Pearson. Anna got birds from Reese on a regular basis but Bob did not. Bob shared birds with many more than 3 people but the 3 you mentioned are the ones that kept and showed them.
I have many different combinations in my RIR's...I have pure birds from Greg Chamness and "Crossed" birds from the Chamness/Simmons cross. I have many families of each.

Matt. Another thing I just ran across. Bob did indeed have the Underwood line while he was living in Wisconsin. I came across this some time ago while reading this thread from the beginning. That took a few months and is the reason I joined BYC. Anyway, post 1786 from Bob states that he got 5 dozen Underwood eggs about 30 years ago when he lived in Wisconsin and that they were very good stock. He didnt state where he went with that line though. Im sure that he didnt cross them later with his Mohawk line as he would have said so. Bob seemed to be meticulous in his record keeping and history and would not have left that information out if it had occurred. It could have been an experiment he was doing at crossing and it didnt turn out...but now we can only guess. Bob was an invaluable source of information and his wisdom is truly missed.

Bob didn't keep the Underwood birds when he moved to the South. When he got settled in South Alabama which was several years after he lived in Wisconsin he got some Reese line RIR's. There was a gap between the time when he lived in Wisconsin and Alabama. During that time he lived in Louisiana for several years and I don't think he had Red Large Fowl during that time.


Matt