From Proceedings of the American Poultry Association held January 17, 1900 on the origin of the APA

The Origin and Subsequent Meetings of the Association

Mr. William H. Churchman, of  Wilmington, Delaware, the first President, writes under date of November 30, 1898 on the origin of the APA:

“If my memory serves me, I talked the matter of forming an American Association at two or three poultry exhibitions and succeeded in getting about fifteen of the principal exhibitors interested in the matter, and we held an informal meeting in the spring of 1873, when a committee was appointed to take the matter in hand, and if found advisable to make a call to all interested to meet that fall for the purpose of organizing an American Poultry Association. I was chairman of the committee and made the call for organization, which took place in Buffalo in the early part of December, 1873. My memory is good on the subject of membership, as on the day of my arrival home in December 1873, I had two hundred certificates of membership printed and filled in one for myself, and the next day went to Philadelphia and handed the certificate with ten dollars to Joseph M. Wade, and he wrote his signature thereon, the same that I now enclose.

(Signed) I WM. H. CHURCHMAN.”

Mr. J. Y. Bicknell writes under date of December 12, 1898 that the informal meeting mentioned above was held in Buffalo, February 15, 1873, and was reorganized in Buffalo, January 15, 1874.

According to Fanciers’ Journal, Vol. I, January 29, 1874 edited by Joseph M. Wade, who was secretary of all meetings up to this time, “the second annual meeting of the A.P.A. was held at Buffalo, N.Y., January 16-20, 1874, and on motion of C. A. Sweet was adjourned, to meet at Boston, February 5, 1874.” Nothing is said in the report about a “reorganization’ referred to by Mr. Bicknell, but there is a pamphlet in existence which reads on title page: “Proceedings of the American Poultry Asso. at the second annual meeting held at Hartford, Conn., Jan. 21, 1875, and of adjourned meeting of same at Buffalo, N. Y., Feb. 12-17, 1875,” in which reference is made to the Boston meeting of February 12, 1874.

From the above it seems that the first meeting and origin of the APA was an informal gathering of about fifteen exhibitors at Buffalo, February 15, 1873. Organized at Buffalo, December, 1873, met again at Buffalo, January 15, 1874, and adjourned to Boston, February 12, 1874.

Second meeting—Hartford, Ct., January 21, 1875, and adjourned to Buffalo, February 12-17, 1875.

Third meeting—Chicago, January 24, 1876.

Fourth meeting—Buffalo, N. Y., February 5, 1877.

Fifth meeting—Portland, Me., February 12-13, 1878.

Sixth meeting- Buffalo, N. Y., February 3-4, 1879.

Seventh meeting—Indianapolis, Ind., January 12-13, 1880.

Eighth meeting—Cleveland, Ohio, January 31, February 1, 1881.

Ninth meeting—Worcester, Mass., January 31-February 2, 1883.

Tenth meeting—Toledo, Ohio, January 3 and 4, 1884.

Eleventh meeting—New York city, N. Y., February 9, 1885.

Twelfth meeting—St. Louis, Mo., December 20, 1886.

Thirteenth meeting—Indianapolis, Ind., January 23-25, 1888.

Fourteenth meeting—Buffalo, N. Y., January 18-19, 1889.

Fifteenth meeting—New York city, N. Y., February 21-22, 1890.

Sixteenth meeting—Charleston, S. C., January 15-16, 1891.

Seventeenth meeting—Los Angeles, Cal., February 12, 1892.

Eighteenth meeting—Chicago. 111., October 18-21, 1893.

Nineteenth meeting—Kansas City, Mo., December 20-22, 1894.

Twentieth meeting—Washington, D.C., February 15, 1896.

Twenty First meeting—New York city, N. Y., January 1, 1897.

Twenty-second meeting—Boston, Mass., January 18-20, 1898.

Twenty-third meeting—Toronto, Ont., Canada, Jan. 10-11, 1899.

Twenty-fourth meeting-Cedar Rapids, Iowa, January 17, 1900.