Non-industrial Leghorn chickens were first brought to North America in 1852 by Captain Gates. In 1853 F.J. Kinney received a shipment of Brown Leghorns at Boston Harbor. In 1872 Lewis Wright imported Brown Leghorns to England from America. They were crossbred with Minorca chickens to increase the breed’s size. These birds were reintroduced into America in 1910 to help build the commercial poultry industry. The Brown Leghorn chicken is just one of the many variations of this highly popular breed. While Brown Leghorn chickens aren’t necessarily superior egg layers when compared to White Leghorn chickens, they are still very good layers in their own right.
Brown Leghorn chickens are known for being both independent and active. Therefore, they would thrive best in a free-range environment. Brown Leghorn chickens do well foraging, and they are also very alert at all times, which will help prevent issues with predators in your area. One issue you may run into with Brown Leghorn chickens, however, is that they tend to be nervous and skittish birds, which means that housing them in a small coop would not be ideal.
Once they reach maturity, Brown Leghorn chickens will stay relatively small. Hens tend to tap out at roughly 3-4 pounds while roosters do not get much bigger, reaching only 5-6 pounds max. Brown Leghorn chickens are primarily used for egg-laying, producing hundreds of medium to large white eggs each year. So whether you own a farm or simply want to keep Brown Leghorn chickens in your backyard, you will surely be satisfied with the quality and amount of eggs that you receive from your Leghorn chickens. One thing to consider, however, is that the hens are not considered to be broody, so you will need to incubate the eggs in most cases.
