 The first written reference to the breed was in 1814 ( " Instructions to Young Sportsmen " by Colonel Peter Hawker ) , the first painting in 1823 ( " Cora . A Labrador Bitch " by Edwin Landseer ) , and the first photograph in 1856 ( the Earl of Home 's dog " Nell " , described both as a Labrador and a St. Johns dog ) . By 1870 the name Labrador Retriever became common in England . The first yellow Labrador on record was born in 1899 ( Ben of Hyde , kennels of Major C.J. Radclyffe ) , and the breed was recognised by The Kennel Club in 1903 . The first American Kennel Club ( AKC ) registration was in 1917 . The chocolate Labrador emerged in the 1930s , although liver spotted pups were documented being born at the Buccleuch kennels in 1892 . The first dog to appear on the cover of Life Magazine was a black Labrador Retriever called ‘ Blind of Arden ’ in the December , 12th , 1938 issue . The St. John 's dog survived until the early 1980s , the last two individuals being photographed in old age around 1981 . 
