The breed originated in America, one of several red pig strains which developed around 1800 in New England. One theory is that the pigs were imported from the Guinea coast of Africa at the time of the slave trade. Another suggestion is that the red color came from the Berkshire pig from Britain, a breed that is now black but at that time was rusty brown. Another influence on the breed may have been four shoats from Spain and Portugal that were imported around 1837, however it is unclear whether these formed part of the breed's ancestry.