Columbus, Ohio – November 7-9th the Nation’s largest poultry exhibition and swap of 2014 took place in Columbus, Ohio with thousands of people attending and nearly 10,000 fowl entered in the exhibition! This year marked the 100th Anniversary of the American Bantam Association (ABA) and this brought in record numbers for the 3 day Ohio National (ON) meet. Not only were the entries of bantams record setting but entries for geese, turkeys, ducks, pigeons and large fowl chickens was equally incredible.
The American class of Large fowl was well represented with
record numbers of Rhode Island Reds, White Rocks, Dominiques and Buckeyes to
name a few. The Buckeye class was one of
the largest groups of Buckeyes assembled in modern times with nearly 70 entries
overall. The American Buckeye Club (ABC)
had several members from ALL over the USA with entries as well and lots of
folks came out to support their club.
In addition to the birds being displayed the American
Buckeye Club had a display table that received a great deal of traffic and
visitors from all over the USA and Canada.
Nearly 100 new members were signed up during the event and many more
sent completed applications afterward as well.
All three days were very busy for the ABC directors, family and members
who worked the table and show.
The ABC had several raffles and prizes that were awarded at
the show and that also contributed to the crowds around the table each day! The BIG GRAND PRIZE was the enormous Gift
Basket, valued at over $200, assembled by ABC members and directors which
overflowed with a number of great items.
When the raffle concluded Robert Rhodes of MA was the winner of the
raffle and took the basket back to New England!
A fitting win to a man who has been a legend in the Buckeye community
for many, many years. Robert Rhodes has
been breeding and keeping Buckeyes perhaps longer than any other Buckeye
breeder alive and his son has now stepped up to keep the legacy alive and well.
No poultry event as large as the ON with a huge gathering of
Buckeye enthusiasts would be complete without giving away some Buckeye birds.
This year, ABC President Joe Shumaker provided a Trio of Buckeye Bantams for
one lucky winner and that winner was Dawson Latham of Lima, Ohio. Young Mr. Latham is a Junior exhibitor of
Buckeyes and other breeds who is also a member of the American Buckeye Club, congratulations
to Dawson!
Finally, we want to thank everyone who came out to the Ohio
National and helped the ABC kick off our membership drive for 2015 and
beyond. The ON is a great place to
visit, meet new friends and visit with long time friends as well, it’s a place
to share info and buy or sell a few birds that might produce the next season’s big
winner! With the launch of a new board
of directors the ABC is poised for tremendous growth and with well over 1100
members in the club we expect great things in the coming years.
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