A. Q. Carter and The Dominique Standard
As a historian of the Dominique breed, research did not end with the publication of “The American Dominique - A Treatise for the Fancier”. The search for additional information on our favorite breed's history has continued. This includes seeking out more details on the breeders of the past. One individual that stands out in the early 1900s is Mr. A. Q. Carter.
As the years have passed and new fanciers have taken up the Dominiques, the name of Mr. A. Q. Carter is probably unknown. It was this gentleman's efforts that prompted the American Poultry Association to realign the written standard to the breed's characteristics. Likewise it was Mr. Carter's winning stock from the 1913 Boston Exposition that was used as models for the 1915 Standard of Perfection. Those Dominiques are so close to the ideal that they were used in subsequent Standards for 75 years.
It is known that Mr. Carter, retiring to Jefferson, Maine in 1918 due to a lingering illness, sold his Freeport farm and Dominique stock to the father of John Gould. Mr. Gould writing about Mr. Carter stated, “He built a long poultry house and lovingly bred his Dominiques, showing them in the many poultry exhibitions of the time, as well as at all the fairs, and offering starter stock at fancy prices. Mr. Carter was a man of some means, so he conducted his poultry business on a more expensive level than other Freeporters.”
Mr. Carter was proud of his wins, but more than that, he was proud of the consistent high quality of his stock. In the 1913 National American Dominique Club booklet his advertisement stated, “My show record on Dominiques have never been equaled. But it is not the show record that always tells the tale - it is the kind of birds you actually own in your own yards. For years I have been trying to get an entire flock of Dominiques that run true throughout - not a good one here and there but all good. I have come the nearest to it this year for I got 90 per cent of good Dominique type and the other 10 per cent have gone to the butcher.”
While we know a bit about his work with Dominiques, little was known about the man - for example, the name associated with the initials was unknown. For several years this author has searched for information on Mr. Carter and only recently was forwarded information by an amateur genealogist.
The following information was found in Reverend Charles Nelson Sinnett's 1907 work “Jacob Johnson of Harpswell, Maine and His Descendants East and West.”
When J. H. Drevenstedt raised the issue of the need for a Dominique club to return the breed to it's former glory several influential gentlemen answered the call. They in turn wrote numerous articles on the "true old time Dominique."
To understand why these Dominique leaders were making pleas to adhere to the Standard, it is necessary to understand the many changes that have occurred in the Dominique standards. Comparing the various editions of the Standard of Perfection it is possible to determine the points in history when the interests of specific parties prevailed upon the A.P.A. to change the Standard.
For example, the grossly inflated weights published in the 1888 Standard coincided with a desire to change the Dominique to conform to the Plymouth Rock type, in all respects except comb.
This distortion of the Dominique’s type lead knowledgeable writers of the time to call for the formation of a Dominique club to preserve the breed before it was lost to crossbreeding.
The 1905 Standard of Perfection so inflamed the Dominique breeders that they began a campaign to have the Standard changed.
The A.P.A., yielding to the demands of the Dominique breeders, modified the text and included the updated description in the 1910 Standard.
While the description, in the 1910 Standard, was more palatable, the art work done by Smith was not. The 1912 issue of the 1910 Standard appeared with updated cuts of the Dominique. Franklane Sewell had reworked his pictures from the 1905 Standard, as well as combining some of the better points from Smith’s pictures.
I believe my correspondents have indeed located our A. Q. Carter. There is little likelihood that there were two wealthy A. Q. Carters in Freeport, Maine at the same time. Hopefully, the new clues this article contains will lead to more information on such a pivotal figure in the Dominique history.
Again there is a gap in documentation, however it is apparent that the A.P.A. approved of this change as the 1915 Standard carries a description that very closely resembles Mr. Carter’s version.
While Mr. Carter was actively promoting the club to the public and submitting recommendations to the A.P.A. on the Standard Revision, he was also exhibiting his Dominiques.
If fact, the artist Franklane Sewell was so taken by Mr. Carter’s champion hen “Speckles” and his champion cockerel (no name given) at the 1913 Boston Exposition that they were selected as models for the upcoming Standard.
Mr. Sewell did the initial work on the Dominique for the Standard, however; there was concern over the amount of work to be done in the complete revision and dissatisfaction with some of Sewell's work to-date. A. O. Schilling was hired to help with the revision and he was given the task of reworking the Dominiques. His rendition of the Dominique was heralded as “magnificent”.
The Standard of Perfection issued in 1915 contained the art work of A. O. Schilling.
The cut of the Dominiques is without a doubt the best that was ever done.
T
his artwork was of such high quality that it remained in use until the Standard of 1983 which replaced all of the half-tone black and white pictures with color plates.
The coloring of the Dominiques was based on Schilling's artwork, though the end product is less than desirable as most of the fine detail was lost. Fortunately, the written standard remains intact and the APA has made available the current descriptions along-side the black-and-white breed pictures (commonly referred to as the Black and White Standard).
Accompanying this article are pictures of the Dominiques and the final product as shown in the APA Standard of Perfection. There are subtle differences where Mr. Schilling retouched the photographs so they would be closer to the ideal bird described in the Standard. As an example, notice that the Schilling male has longer and fuller sickles than the real bird.
While there are those that contend we should not use the Standard pictures to determine how a breed should look, it is this author's opinion that A.Q. Carter's description and A.O. Schilling's interpretation are so closely aligned that in this case it is allowed.
To Mr. Albert Quincy Carter, we the Dominique fanciers owe a debt of gratitude. His writings peaked the interest of those few individuals who kept the breed alive through the lean years. His version of the breed standard was thorough, concise and most important was recognized as true to type for the breed. And finally, by immortalizing the “old type” Dominique when he donated their use to the Standard illustrators. With these actions he has helped several generations of fanciers in their pursuit of the perfect Dominique.
Mr. W. H. Davenport wrote in the May 1913 Reliable Poultry Journal, “Secretary Carter writes to ask if I will send in some comments on the cuts of Dominiques in the last Standard. If he means the 1910 Standard, I certainly cannot say too much against the cuts. First, these cuts do not represent the breed in agreement with the verbal description in the book . . . . Second, the Standard ought to be better, if anything that the true birds are. This cut has a tendency to lead some men to go to cross breeding with Rocks so as to get this mongrel form, which is entirely undesirable . . . This cut is misleading to every judge who sees it, and in that way is proving a downright detriment to the breed. . .”
The overriding sentiment, from those who knew Dominiques, was that the pictures in the Standard were not lifelike and lacked the detail necessary to adequately portray the breed.
Mr. Sewell, rather than take a defensive position, publicly solicited comments on what the ideal Dominique should be, then presented in the Reliable Poultry Journal, a set of cuts based on Dominiques from the A. Q. Carter flock.
To this author’s knowledge the article (above left) from the 1913 Dominique Doings is the only surviving copy of the original draft. However, a few copies of the final standard, as presented in the 1914 National Dominique Club newsletter, still exist and from the July 8 - 12, 1913 meeting of the Standard revision committee we have these notes:
Using the A. Q. Carter Dominiques above, Franklane Sewell retouched to produce this version for the Standard committe. Writing about the results, he stated:
"I cannot do better in the interests of the Dominique progress than to set before earnest breeders of this old American race this pair of cuts made from photographs of A. Q. Carter's first prize cock and first prize hen at the last Boston show. According to several experts, who commented on these birds, among them the experienced J. H. Drevenstedt, who judged them and awarded their prizes, the come nearest to the original, and what is today considered by Dominique breeders to be the best in the breed, of any birds seen at our leading shows in many years. Inasmuch as there is dissatisfaction on the part of Dominique breeders with the A.P.A. Standard ideals made by this writer, we request all breeders of Dominiques and those competent to judge the true type, to send to Mr. A. Q. Carter, secretary of the National American Dominique Club, Freeport, Maine, their criticisms of the ideals in the Standard, and any changes they have to suggest that will give this useful old race ideals in the next issue of the Standard that will be true to the genuine old type and that will assist in its progress.
With the exception of the portrait of old “Grandma”, no other Dominique female has impress me with her distinct type so much as Mr. Carter's first prize hen at the last Boston show. In style and general shape she is similar to the famous old hen mentioned above. The almost gamy, ambitious carriage, that among horsemen is sometimes call “toppy,” the round head fine skull and small bone are emphasized. The wide light-colored bars of the plumage, between the second dark bars and the distinct bars that extend well across the rounded tips and give the much desired “lace like” effect, are typical in this hen and worthy to continue the fashion of the genuine old-time Dominique that experienced fanciers of this true American race are ben on preserving. The Dominique needs no introduction to veteran breeders of poultry in America. It was long ago labeled par excellent for profit on the farm."
These are actual photographs of the A. Q. Carter Dominiques that won at the January 1913 Boston Exposition. The following comments were taken from the Reliable Poultry Journal.
Comments from Mr. John Robinson:
The cockerel that headed the first prize pen at Boston last winter (1912), is a fine model, with well-fitted breast and body. He has a large, well spread tail, not fully grown out in sickles. The natural pose would be to have the head and breast a trifle higher. The legs show slight crouching; would be straighter when standing or walking at freedom. The spike at the rear of the comb should be more tapered toward the blade and turned slightly upward. The color throughout shows excellent Dominique markings, remarkably regular for the breed.
“Speckle,” is the mate of the cockerel just preceding, and is also owned by the same breeder, A. Q. Carter, Freeport, Maine, secretary of the American Dominique Club. Mr Carter exhibited this fine pullet at the Boston show and was awarded first prize on her. Mr. Carter writes: “This is as good a type as I have ever seen."
Comments from Mr. A. Q. Carter:
This male comes nearest to the general type all over. This bird has plenty of style, shape, good color and fine tail development with the exception of the great sickles, which are not fully grown. They should curve over and the tips hang on a line with the center of the body.
This is the best colored female shown and is excellent in general type. Her head should be up more and the tail carried down a trifle.