(click on images to enlarge)
Dr. Walter G. Kendall of Boston was one of the earliest breeders and exhibitors of Frenchies. He owned the famous Squantum Kennels which included Frenchies and Bostons. In 1899 he imported his first French bulldogs: Diavola, Paulus, Julie and Melba.
He bought Rico for $1,000, an unheard of price at that time. Rico was the first French bulldog to achieve an American championship and became Kendall’s inseparable companion until its death. He wrote of Rico:
“There was not enough money in any one city to buy from me the one dog I knew had a soul.”
Rico was never defeated in the show ring and was the sire of Maurice, the first American-bred champion.
Kendall had many interests other than dogs. On the occasion of his sixtieth birthday a local newspaper wrote of him: “the doc is a sort of steel and whalebone combination of wheelman, dog fancier, horticulturist, boxer, orator, and some score or more other things.”
The French Bulldog Club of New England in 1924 struck a medal, “To Walter Gardner Kendall, pioneer and leader in the development of the French bulldog in America.” Accepting the award, Kendall said that one of the most pleasant of his several hobbies had been to aid in the development of the French bulldog, “the most ideal of dogs.” He continued to breed and show Frenchies well into the 1930s when he was over eighty years in age. By that time he had bred the twentieth generation from his original stock. Click on the article to the right, from the Boston transcript, 12/22/1924, regarding Kendall’s award from the New England Club.
Here is Tra-La-La, a dog shown by Kendall in the 1930s.
The FBDCA has acquired several items that are displayed here:
–A Squantum Kennels envelope addressed to a gentleman in Pennsylvania.
–A short letter: 
“My dear Sir, Your note received and I am gratified to learn that you are pleased with the little darling. I have complied with your request as you will note.
Sincerely, W. G. Kendall”
.
–Kendall’s business card (right) with
prescription on back (left)
Unidentified dog
