Last week the Farm got a new addition. Actually, it was an entire flock. Earlier in the summer a friend at a Wisconsin Historical Society site that interprets the mid nineteenth century asked if we might be willing to share some of our Black Java chickens with them. The Java breed was very popular during their time period. However, by the 1920's it would have been pretty rare to find them on a working farm. Despite this fact, we raised the Javas as a favor to staff at the Museum of Science and Industry who were doing genetic work with the breed. If you have ever seen the chick hatching exhibit at the MSI, those are Java chicks they are showing. With the Javas gone, we were ready to import a new flock from Primrose Farm in St. Charles, Illinois. Primrose raises a great dual purpose bird called a Columbian Wyandotte. This breed was developed by crossing Barred Rock and White Wyandottes parents. The name Columbian comes from their original unveiling at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, in 1893. Everyone seems to be enjoying their new digs and are getting along fine. Please come and see the new birds on your next trip to the farm.
