Page 52 - Chow LIfe - Winter 2019

Regional Club Spotlight

Wisconsin Chow Chow Club, Inc.

by Vicki DeGruy, Secretary

The suggestion to write a history of the Wisconsin note that the "business part of the meeting was cut
Chow Chow Club for this issue of Chow Life took short because of the party planned for the balance
me on an interesting and kind of sad journey of the evening" and a buffet supper. Obviously,
through the past. Sad because so many people who the socialness and importance of eating well at our
might be able tell me about the club's early days are meetings has a long tradition! The minutes state the
gone now and because so many of the club's earliest following meeting, January 5, 1939, would involve a
records appear to be lost. Nevertheless, going card party with members asked to "pledge one table
through what we do have was interesting and fun, of four at 50 cents a person", proceeds to go to the
providing a glimpse into times that often brought far show fund.
different challenges than what we face today. The next minutes we have are from April 1939,
meeting held at the Knickerbocker Hotel on Lake
Michigan in Milwaukee. The hotel is still there.
Although meetings appear to have been held
monthly, we have very few minutes. This is the
only one on hand for that year. The club's treasury
held $36 in the general fund and $181 in the show
fund. There was interest in outreach as there was a
discussion about obtaining dog license records from
city hall in order to locate more Chow owners.
March 1940's meeting was also at the
Knickerbocker, where Dick Hoffman (who you
might recognize as the breeder of CH Yang Fu Tang)
Some of you may know that Dr. JoAnne O'Brien was read a letter "received from the editor of the new
born JoAnne Schmidt and grew up in Chicago. One Chow Chow Magazine. It was suggested that a list
of the first items I discovered when I opened the of our members be forwarded to receive a sample
box of old Wisconsin CCC material was an undated copy." Five new members were welcomed into the
letter to WCCC from her father, H.P. Schmidt club at that meeting and Mr. Hoffman and Perry
offering a gold plated trophy, value $3.00, to the Williams presided over a Chow Q&A session.
club's upcoming specialty. He apologizes for the last Regarding the new Chow Chow Magazine, at the
minuteness of the donation because his family was next meeting, "it was suggested by the president
currently in quarantine because son Paul had scarlet that a letter of thanks be sent to the American
fever! (Paul recovered) Chow Chow magazine editors for their kindness
WCCC was incorporated in 1936, making it one of in sending copies of their publication to all our
members. Also that as many members as possible
the oldest regional clubs still active today. However, subscribe to this worthwhile magazine."
the first minutes I have are from December, 1938,
meeting held at the club house at Jacobus Park, At that meeting also, it was decided to hold the
Wauwatosa. Rental of the club house was $5.00 WCCC specialty as designated classes with the
duly paid after a motion passed to do so. There was Wisconsin KC in August, expenses to the club
no list of attendees provided, although a number would only be the trophies and judge. I'm guessing
of names appear of which I recognize few. The this may have been the beginning of the club's
backside of the typed minutes page contains 3/4's custom of designated specialties rather than
of a page of illegible pencil scribblings sprinkled standalones. In July 1940, it was decided to take $35
with a few names and amounts. The minutes from the show fund to cover trophies, judge, and

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