Mrs. Gladys F. Harriman
1896 – 1983

Mrs. Gladys F. Harriman, who along with her husband E. Roland Harriman owned Cinar Kennels in Arden, New York, was the first person to produce field-bred English Cocker Spaniels here in the United States that achieved success in cocker field trials. In 1935 Cinar Kennels imported two English Cocker Spaniels with field trial championships in their pedigrees from Scotland and the breeding of this pair ultimately produced five field trial champions from four different litters from 1936 through 1939. A sixth Cinar field trial champion would come later from a different mating. Although English Cocker Spaniels had been imported to the United States to participate in Cocker field trials starting in 1926, the English type of Cocker was vastly outnumbered in trials by the American Cocker during this period. In fact only one English Cocker Spaniel import had become a Field Trial Champion. From this point and continuing over a twenty-five year period Gladys Harriman became known for her devotion to field-bred English Cocker Spaniels thus we are delighted, in this inaugural year of the English Cocker Spaniel Field Trial Hall of Fame, to honor her.

Mrs. Harriman was not just an owner and breeder — she enjoyed handling the dogs in field trial competitions herself. In 1943 she won the Cinar Perpetual Challenge Trophy with Cinar’s Soot. Mrs. Harriman had established the Cinar Perpetual Challenge Trophy in 1940 and it was awarded to the high point dog in select east coast trials each year from 1940 to 1964. When she donated the trophy, she did not intend to monopolize the award, however Cinar bred dogs won it almost every year in the 1940s.

Mrs. Harriman was dedicated to the training and care of the dogs in her kennel. She and her husband, E. Roland Harriman, who served as the Chairman of the Union Pacific Railroad and a banker with Brown Brothers Harriman & Company, lived on a large estate which allowed her to provide quarters for a full time dog trainer and staff. Tom Briggs trained the Cinar English Cocker Spaniels until his death in 1940. At this point Mrs. Harriman recruited Lionel Bond, who had trained in England with William Humphrey (who incidentally was the breeder of our first field trial champion), to oversee the kennel and training of the English Cocker Spaniels. Both men were highly regarded trainers who, in addition to training the Cinar dogs, contributed to the overall success of the English Cocker Spaniel in field trials.

In addition, Mr. Bond assisted Mrs. Harriman in the writing of a chapter on the training of field-bred English Cocker Spaniels and Cocker field trials in American Sporting Dogs, edited by Eugene V. Connett and published in 1948. As a sign of their relationship with the Bond family, the Harrimans willed the kennel and quarters as well as the AKC registered name “Cinar” to Lionel Bond, and his daughter, Joyce Hurley, lives there today with a few remaining Cinar English Cockers.

Mrs. Harriman and her husband were gracious hosts. The last Cocker field trial of each season was held on their estate. This weekend was always one of the highlights of the year. Mrs. Harriman’s ongoing interest and participation in Cocker field trials through breeding, training, handling and hosting events continued into the 1960s and she is fondly remembered for all of her contributions.