History
American gamefowl is a breed of poultry once bred for cockfighting and used as fighting cocks. They played a significant role in American history as they were bred, fought, and raised by many famous political leaders. As Abraham Lincoln used to be a cockfighting referee, the breed indirectly influenced his nickname "honest Abe."
Most American gamefowl lines (or strains) consist of Irish Game, Old English, and Oriental Gamefowl. However many others contain Spanish strains, along with gamefowl from other places including the Sumatra breed. The American gamefowl has gained in popularity as a show breed since the outlawing of cock fights.
The most common colorations are "Black breasted red" (dubbed reds), "Wheaten" (dubbed reds), "Silver duckwings" (dubbed greys), "Golden duckwings" (called greys), White, black, brown-red, red quil, gold, pumpkin, and blue (in various forms, this includes splash, blue wheaten, blue reds, etc.).
The American gamefowl are extremely cold and heat resistant, intelligent, and are capable of surviving independently in the wild. Many places have cross-bred gamefowl present in the streets/woods. Key West, Guam, and Hawaii are some of the main places known for Spanish gamefowl running wild, with some American gamefowl strains as well. American gamefowl can also be found in the wild in various places in the continental United States, often after escaping or being set free by owners.
Read more about this topic: American Game (chicken)
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)