12/30/2023
Morris & Essex Top Dogs
by Joan Harrigan
Showing dogs today is rarely glamorous. Aside from the moments in the ring and a chance to catch up with friends, there’s a lot of back-breaking work and too little time. Too often, exhibitors leave a show with no idea of what happened in the groups, much less which dog went Best In Show. It’s understandable – most dog fanciers have jobs, families and responsibilities waiting for them at home. And most have never experienced the grandeur and scope of the great dog shows of the past.
Only a few shows provide a window into that past. Thanks to the vision of Wayne Ferguson and the nearly 400 devoted and diverse members of the revived Morris & Essex Kennel Club of New Jersey, every five years the great Morris & Essex Kennel Club Show reappears to remind us of lost traditions. This year, the show takes place Thursday, October 7 on the meticulously manicured grounds of Colonial Park, Franklin Township, New Jersey. Clearly, this is a different type of show. With its archival exhibits, fabulous bank of trophies, and dedication to tradition, Morris & Essex invites exhibitors to take time to appreciate the moment and the joy of purebred dogs.
First held in 1927, Morris & Essex was legendary for its size (more than 4,000 entries from 1937 through 1940), quality and elegance. The show was orchestrated and financed by Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge and held on the polo fields of Hartley Farms, her husband’s estate in Harding Township, New Jersey. The list of Best In Show winners contains familiar names from the past, among them 1939’s winner, the Cocker Spaniel Ch. My Own Brucie, who was called the “most photographed dog in the world,” and who contributed to the cocker’s place as America’s most popular breed of the time...continue reading: http://caninechronicle.com/?p=278727