This library collects the primary sources on the history of the Labrador Retriever. Not popular articles — original texts written by those who saw, bred or studied those dogs.
1817
Narrative of a Voyage to Hudson's Bay in His Majesty's Ship Rosamond
Lt. Edward Chappell, R.N.
The oldest source in the library. Chappell sailed the Labrador coast in 1813. He describes the sled dogs of the region — the same ancestors of the St. John's dog.
Public domain
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1822
Narrative of a Journey across the Island of Newfoundland
W. E. Cormack
The most cited source. The original passage on long coat: fishermen preferred the short coat because in frosty weather long hair froze. The long-haired ones were exported to England.
Public domain
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1827
A History of the Island of Newfoundland
Rev. Lewis Amadeus Anspach
A magistrate who lived in Newfoundland describes his own dog: black coat, donkey-sized, long glossy winter coat. The key phrase: only half bred.
Public domain
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1859 · 1879
The Dog in Health and Disease
J.H. Walsh — "Stonehenge", Editor The Field
Two editions compared. In 1859: large long-haired Labrador and short-haired St. John's. In 1879 the St. John's is already a retriever of the wavy-coated kind.
Public domain
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1861
Recollections of Labrador Life
Lambert de Boilieu
Commercial agent on the Labrador coast in the 1850s. Chapter XXI: long-haired dogs are sent to England because useless on the spot. Forty years after Cormack, the same observation.
Public domain
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1877
The Kennel Club Calendar and Stud Book, Vol. IV
The Kennel Club
Official register of 1876 shows. Class XIII — Retrievers (Wavy-Coated): long coat had its own category, official pedigrees and registered winners. Twenty years before Labrador recognition.
Public domain
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1893
A History and Description of the Modern Dogs (Sporting Division)
Rawdon B. Lee — Kennel Editor, The Field
The Field's kennel editor devotes a full chapter to the Flat or Wavy Coated Retriever, the dog of the future. Documents origins from pure Labrador.
Public domain
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1897
Il Kennel Book del Duca di Buccleuch
Private archive — Drumlanrig Castle
The Buccleuch kennel leather register from 1839. The first field trial of 1899 had wavy-coated, flat-coated and curly-coated — the Labrador was not yet a category. For culled dogs: "Put down — useless."
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1936
The Labrador Dog: Its Home and History
Lord George Scott & Sir John Middleton
The reference book on the history of the Labrador. Written by the son of the sixth Duke of Buccleuch. Five passages document long coat from the very origins of the breed.
Public domain
Long coat
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