C. T. A.

History

The Cairn Terrier Association

In July 1926 a group of Cairn-lovers decided there was scope for a third club to complement the Cairn Terrier Club and the Southern Cairn Terrier Club.  One reason was to widen geographical coverage; one aim was to keep subscriptions and entrance fees low in order to encourage novices and attract a wide membership.

Another aspiration of the CTA’s founders was to incorporate more “literary material” into the year books.  The early examples, from 70 years ago, contain an impressive number of - often specialised and technical - articles.  Subsequently, partly because of wartime disruptions, this aim rather lapsed, but during the past twenty years, the founders’ hopes have been more fully reflected, in this respect as in others.

The Club’s founding Secretary, Rev. T. W. L. Caspersz, did much of the groundwork: the fact that no fewer than 366 entries were attracted to the CTA’s first Open Show - Great Portland Street, 1928 - is a measure of his achievement.

For the next show, the CTA was granted Challenge Certificates (things moved rapidly in those days!); according to Florence M. Ross in her book “The Cairn Terrier”, the CTA was the first of the breed clubs to be granted Championship status and to hold a show for Cairn Terriers only.

Among the pioneers of the club’s formative era was Baroness Burton; her Dochfour Cairns, with 44 years of CCs, were widely admired.  Proud to belong to the Bass brewing family, she was happy to acknowledge she was “more Beer-de-Beer” than “Vere-de-Vere”.

Other key promoters of the CTA’s activities were the redoubtable Colonel Whitehead (possessor, to quote John Berrecloth, Hon Secretary of the CTC, of a “marvellous, pawky sense of humour”, which sometimes led to embarrassments), the Hon. Lady Hawke (the Association’s first President), Captain Townley, long-serving successor to Rev. Caspersz as Secretary, and Mrs Diana Hamilton (an exhibitor at the first CTA Show and an officer of the club for no fewer than thirty years).

In more recent times, Mrs Bessie Dewhurst became Secretary in 1972, continuing for some 21 years until 1993, when Mr Derrick Compson took over the post, followed by Mrs Elizabeth Godfrey, who preceded the current Secretary, Mrs Catherine Butterfield.

By the time of its Golden Jubilee in 1976, the CTA could boast 423 members.  At that late date, it is interesting to note, there were still only three Cairn Terrier clubs with Championship status.  The picture now looks very different, with six clubs in all running Championship as well as Open and Limited shows.

The Cairn Terrier Association currently holds one Championship show and one Open show per year; however, an extra, Limited Show, is planned for 2006.