Shropshire

The Shropshire breed of domestic sheep originated from the hills of Shropshire, and North Staffordshire, England, during the 1840s. The breeders in the area used the local horned black-faced sheep and crossed them with a few breeds of white-faced sheep (Southdown, Cotswold, and Leicester). This produced a medium-sized polled (hornless) sheep that produced good wool and meat. In 1855 the first Shropshires were imported into the United States (Virginia). This breed is raised primarily for meat. 1800s In 1859 the breed was officially recognized by the Royal Agricultural Society as being a distinct breed. The popularity of the Shropshire breed grew rapidly in England, and in 1882 Shropshire breeders founded the Shropshire Sheep Breeders' Association and Flock Book Society, the world's first such society for sheep. The same year the Society published the first Flock Book, a record of sheep bred and their breeders. The Society still survives, and still publishes a Flock Book annually. By 1884 more Shropshires were exhibited at the local shows than all other breeds combined. The first documented flock in the United States (one ram and twenty ewes) was brought to Maryland in 1860 by Samuel Sutton. Thousands of Shropshires were exported to the United States after that, as well as to other parts of the English speaking world, notably Australia and New Zealand, and to South America. The breed's adaptability to most environments and their dual-purpose nature led to them quickly becoming a popular breed.