ABSTRACT
In June 1948 an enthusiastic three-mile parade wended its way through the tiny town of Georgetown, Delaware, as the final event in the improbably named (to contemporary ears) “Del-Mar-Va Chicken of Tomorrow Festival.” The parade celebrated a remarkable event that had been building for several years-the national “Chicken of Tomorrow” contest. Initiated by the A&P retail grocery chain and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a national committee of poultry industry organizations promoted the contest to encourage “production of superior meat-type chickens.” A series of state and regional contests proved cash prizes to winners and determined qualified entries for the national competition in Georgetown.1
