 The Central Maine Cat Club (CMCC) was created in the early 1950s by Ethylin Whittemore, Alta Smith and Ruby Dyer in an attempt to increase the popularity of the Maine Coon.For 11 years, the CMCC held cat shows and hosted exhibitions of photographs of the breed and is noted for creating the first written breed standards for the Maine Coon.The Maine Coon was denied provisional breed status — one of the three steps required for a breed not yet recognized by the CFA to be able to compete in championship competitions — by the CFA three times, which led to the formation of the Maine Coon Cat Club in 1973.