Copyright © CAPE FEAR POULTRY ASSOCIATION. All rights reserved.

The Cape Fear Poultry Association was started in the dining area of a McDonald's restaurant in Fayetteville, N.C., in 2005.  Three individuals, including Carolyn Lynn, who loved poultry, decided to start their own club, originally named the Cape Fear Feather Fanciers.  The first public exhibit of about 100 chickens took place at the Cumberland County Fair, the first poultry club in eastern North Carolina.   The club continued to exhibit birds at the fair until 2009. By then, the club was growing and attracting new members.

In 2010, the organization officially changed its name to the Cape Fear Poultry Association.  The club wrote a constitution and bylaws and designed a professional logo representing the club.  In the fall of 2010 and 2011, the club held its first officially sanctioned shows at the Cumberland County Fair. Mr. Wil Burton of Winston-Salem, NC, was the first official judge to preside at these American Poultry Association and American Bantam Association shows. 

The club continued to grow, and the need for more space required a more suitable venue to hold its annual shows. The Johnston County Livestock Arena in Smithfield, NC, suited the club's needs well.  The club held its first show there in 2013, with approximately 300 birds entered. Today, the average number of birds entered is 800 to 1000 birds. We have exhibitors from North Carolina, and many travel considerable distances from other states to our show.

Our club also promotes a Junior Show, judged separately from the open show.  We also host a Youth Showmanship program sponsored by the Youth Exhibition Poultry Association,

Cape Fear Poultry Association is an Associate member of the APA and ABA.  These memberships permit us to host sanctioned shows, and exhibitors who hold membership with either or both of these organizations are eligible for certain benefits granted by these organizations.

Carolyn Lynn is considered the club historian.  She was the club president until 2019 and is now a lifetime member of the club.