It is vital to understand those elements of appearance and temperament that relate to the function of this breed. These historical books emphasize the physical traits and the conditions of work that made and continue to make the Chesapeake different from the other retrievers. The breed remains today a working gun dog. To stay that way, one must know what these dogs were bred to do and the conditions under which they work.

American Duck Shooting George Bird Grinnell, Forest & Stream Co. 1901 [2nd edition]; pgs.406-410, 474-489, 515-521, 611-616

American Sporting Dogs Connett, editor, D. Van Nostrand Co. 1948; Walter Roesler on the Chesapeake Bay Retriever pgs. 220-232

Bird Dogs Ray Holland, A.S.Barnes 1948; pgs.79-89 Good description of Chesapeake personality.

Bob Becker's Dog Digest Bob Becker, Paul, Richmond & Co. 1947; pgs. 26-28, written by CBR breeder F. Bunte, photo of Ch The Second Cocoa is a good example of correct type & size.

The American Book of the Dog Shields & Kierstead, Rand McNally Co. 1891; pgs. 357-371 Good early writing on the breed.

The Bird, The Dog, The Gun Ledyard Sands, Carlyle House Co. 1939; pgs. 453-457 Comments on size in hunting, double coat and describes goose hunting conditions.

The Chesapeake Bay Dog Wm. & John Hurst, privately printed pamphlet 1924 Excellent discussion of the breed. The Hurst's stock and family involvement traced back to the original Sailor & Canton crosses.

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Albert Harris, published by author in an edition of 1000. 1946; Softcovered thin book with historical interest. Validates the Irish Water Spaniel cross. Good photographs showing the variety of types with interesting comments and stories.

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Anthony Bliss, ACC. 1933; First breed book [pamphlet style], contains valuable information, photographs of the dogs of 30's & turn of the century, and proposed changes to breed standard

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Anthony Bliss, ACC. 1936; Contains the most major a revision done to standard with lots of photos and info on early field trials.

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Arthur Beaman, Denlinger. 1981; text limited in scope.

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Edited by Dyane M. Baldwin, The American Chesapeake Club, 1997. Order form and additional information now available on our website.

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Eloise H. Cherry, ACC. 1967

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever Eloise Heller, ACC. 1959; This book and the following three books written by Eloise are quite extensive. The photographs are excellent. The chapters are written by guest authors, which frequently give a cross section of opinions and insight into the character and makeup of the breed.

The Complete Chesapeake Bay Retriever Eloise H. Cherry, Howell House. 1981; Chapter 4, a commentary upon by the breed by Anne Rodgers Clark is especially valuable.

The Dog Book James Watson Doubleday & Co. 1916; pgs. 320, 325-331 Good information on early development of the breed.

Florida and Game Water Birds Robert B. Roosevelt, Orange Judd. 1884; pgs.332-338 Discussion of qualities necessary for a retriever size, color, and coat.

The Hunter's Encyclopedia Raymond Camp, Stackpole. 1948; pgs. 796-799 Photo on pg.797 shows proper hold of a duck reason for some length to muzzle.

Hutchinson's Dog Encyclopedia Walter Hutchinson, Hutchinson & Co. 1935; pgs. 289-291 Good photos of working type note size.

Iron Men and Their Dogs Ferdinard Latrobe, Horn-Shafer Co. 1941; chapter 3 Information on hound & spaniel crosses; lists the three classes of CBRsS. Good photos of working settings; head photos pg.32 shows longer coat & correct stop.

The New Complete Chesapeake Bay Retriever Janet Horn & Dr. Daniel Horn, Howell 1994 Of interest here are the chapters on breed history, Mrs. Horn's personal commentary on the standard, and the section from various breeder judges on standard interpretation.

Our Chesapeakes Eloise H. Cherry, ACC. 1977

The Sporting Dog Joseph Graham, Macmillan & Co. 1904; pgs. 145, 156-163 photo on pg. 45 good illustration of head in areas of stop & muzzle shape. Note weight.