The Chester White was first developed around 1815–1818, using strains of large, white pigs common to the Northeast U.S. and a white boar imported from John RussellDuke of Bedford, Bedfordshirecounty, England, referred to as the Woburn breed, brought by Captain Jefferies of Liverpool, England.[2]
In 1913, the American Chester White Record Association (1885) and the Standard Chester White Record Association (1890) combined to form the Chester White Swine Record Association.[4]
In 1914, all breed organizations were consolidated under the Chester White Swine Record Association, an act which aided the spread of the breed into the rest of the country.[5] Some historians conjecture that Chinese pigs were also added to the mix.[6]
The Certified Pedigreed Swine Association (CPS) was formed in 1997, to combine the records of the Chester White, Poland China, and Spotted, into a central organization with individual state organizations being members.[7]
The Chester White is not a versatile breed suited to both intensive and extensive husbandry. Though not as popular as the Duroc, Yorkshire, or Hampshire,[8] the Chester White is actively used in commercial crossbreeding operations for pork.[6] The Chester White is the most durable of the white breeds; it can gain as much as 1.36 pounds (0.62 kg) a day and gain 1 pound (0.45 kg) for every 3 pounds (1.4 kg) of grain it is fed. Their pale color leaves Chester Whites prone to sunburn; they must be given access to shade in the summer.[1]
^Jones, Herbert A. (1895). "O.I.C. Incorporation". original from Cornell University. International Ohio Improved Chester Record Association. pp. 5, 41. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
^Dohner, Janet Vorwald (2002). The encyclopedia of historic and endangered livestock and poultry breeds. Yale University Press. pp. 175–176. ISBN978-0-300-08880-9.
These are the pig breeds considered to originate wholly or partly in Canada and the United States. Many have complex or obscure histories, so inclusion here does not necessarily imply that a breed is predominantly or exclusively from those countries.
