Title
ARTHUR DENBY WILKINSON AND THE NATIONAL POULTRY TEST COLLECTION
Reference
FR DW
Production date
1952-1990
Creator
Creator History
The National Poultry Test was founded, as the National Egg Laying Test, in 1917 by the National Utility Poultry Society in conjunction with the Great Eastern Railway Co, originating at the GER farm at Dodnash Priory, Bentley, Suffolk under the management of J.N. Leigh. The first Daily Mail Laying Test ran from 1st October 1919 to 31st January 1920, also managed by J.N. Leigh. These two Tests amalgamated in 1926-27, and in 1927-28 the Test moved to a larger test ground at Milford, Enton, Surrey. Railway interest in the Test ceased, but support continued from the Daily Mail, presenting the Championship Gold Cup (first presented 1923-24) and the Two Year Test Trophy. National Laying Test Ltd was formed [before 1952] to carry on the Test. Initially operating a comprehensive stock testing programme concerned with pedigree birds, the Tests expanded to include Commercial Random Sample Tests, Broiler Tests and Breeding Research (Random Sample) Tests (concerned with new composite breeds and hybrids), introduced between 1952 and 1957. From the early 1960s interest shifted from conducting laying tests in small unit houses to modern intensive houses.
Arthur Denby Wilkinson was appointed Test Manager 16th September 1952 and held the post until 1965. Previous posts had included that of Manager of Robert Brown's breeding and commercial egg farm at Aldbourne, Hassocks; Poultry Manager on O.A. Batten's Sussex farm; Assistant Manager of White Lady Poultry Farm, Bray, Berks; Assistant to Keith Wilson, Senior Technical Officer of the Land Settlement Association; Manager of Herbert Smith's accredited farm, Hastings.
Scope and Content
Records relating to the National Poultry Test
Extent
12 series
Level of description
fonds
Content Subject
System of arrangment
FR DW/AD2/1-13 National Test administrative files
FR DW/AD4/1-2 Administrative files relating to premises
FR DW/AD8/1-7 Correspondence
FR DW/AD8/8-14 Correspondence with the press
FR DW/DO1/1-4 Maps
FR DW/ET1/1-59 Records of Tests
FR DW/ET3/1-7 Technical reference material
FR DW/ET3/8-11 Press cuttings
FR DW/P2/B1-13 Individual advertising publications
FR DW/P4/B1 House journal
FR DW/PH2/1-3 Photograph albums
FR DW/PH3/1-29 Files of photographs recording individual Tests
FR DW/PH3/30-37 Files of Test site photographs
FR DW/PH3/38-64 Files of miscellaneous photographs
FR DW/PH3/65-72 Collection of (mostly) mounted and captioned prints
FR DW/SP2/1 File relating to Poultry and Egg Producers Association Award to A. Denby Wilkinson
FR DW/SP4/1 Autobiographical manuscript by A. Denby Wilkinson
Publication Note
Farmers' Weekly From the Ground Up (12 Aug) 1960
pp78-82
6th Farm Buildings Conference (6 Oct) 1961
pp102-104
Diseases on Deep Litter (6 Oct) 1961
pp129-131
Poultry Industry Photograph: The Busiest Hen in Britain (31 Oct) 1957
pp 612
My Column, Eunice Kidd (4 Sep) 1952
pp 360-61
Trans-Atlantic Tribute to Milford (29 Sep) 1960
p12
World Records Smashed in National 500 Day Test (29 Sep) 1960
pp 430-431
My Column, Eunice Kidd (19 Jan) 1961
pp 99-100, 103-104
Solar Inventor Visits `National' (Nov) 1964
p357