Mrs. Wilmer Steele’s broiler house
In 1974, Mrs. Wilmer Steele's broiler house was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It has the distinction of being the only chicken coop included in the Register.
The documentation shows that the folks responsible for maintaining the Register were reluctant to add a chicken coop. They initially rejected the application. But finally they were won over, convinced by the argument that it was in Mrs. Wilmer Steele's chicken coop that the modern broiler industry (i.e. breeding chickens for meat rather than for eggs) began.
More info from Wikipedia:
Mrs. Wilmer Steele's broiler house, located at the University of Delaware Substation near Georgetown, Delaware
The documentation shows that the folks responsible for maintaining the Register were reluctant to add a chicken coop. They initially rejected the application. But finally they were won over, convinced by the argument that it was in Mrs. Wilmer Steele's chicken coop that the modern broiler industry (i.e. breeding chickens for meat rather than for eggs) began.
More info from Wikipedia:
Cecile Steele of Ocean View, Delaware was the first person in Delaware to raise chickens specifically for meat production, separately from her laying flock that was primarily meant to produce eggs. The wife of a Coast Guardsman stationed at the Bethany Beach Lifesaving Station, she raised her first flock of 500 in 1923, selling 387 two-pound chickens for 67 cents per pound. She ordered 50, but was accidentally shipped 500 which she decided to keep and sell at a discount. Her business model was profitable. In 1924 she doubled to 1,000 chickens, and in 1925 leaped to 10,000. By 1973, 50 years later, the industry processed 3 billion chickens per year.
"Ike Long, a broiler caretaker, two of the Steele children and Mrs. Wilmer Steele in front of a series of colony houses during the pioneering days of the commercial broiler industry."
Comments
Sixty-seven cents a pound in 1923 would be over $12 a pound today. Also, two pounds is mighty small for a broiler. I wonder what they did with roosters before Mrs. Steele hatched her brilliant idea.
Posted by ges on 06/03/24 at 10:07 AM
Category: Animals | Farming | Landmarks