Sept october 11 decoymag pgs2 47 goby

September/October 2011 $8.95

Magnificent“Cockey family”swans now credited totalented Baltimoredecoy maker

COLLECTOR PROFILEPassionately embracingtheir collection everyday

GUYETTE, SCHMIDT &DEETER AUCTION

Crowell decorative redheadstands above its peers

FRANK & FRANK AUCTIONWard brothers wood duck

tops the sales chart

2 Decoy MagazineJanuary/February 2007 2

DICK McINTYRE / Broker158 Jasmine Hal l Rd. • Seabrook, S .C . 29940

843•466•0250 • E-mail : [email protected]

SINCE 1977

Coming Soon - CollectableOldDecoys.comANTIQUE AMERICAN BIRD DECOYS WITH ATTITUDE

THE F INEST IN AMER ICAN DECOYS

ANTIQUE AMERICAN BIRD DECOYS ARE OUR ONLY BUSINESS.ALL ASPECTS OF DECOY MARKETING - SALES - CONSIGNMENTS - AUCTION BIDDING - APPRAISALS - EXPERIENCED CONSULTING

LLOONNGG--BBIILLLLEEDD CCUURRLLEEWW - Back Bay, Virginia, c. 1900. The body is made from a cypress knee and the separatepine head is doweled into the body. Collected by F. PhillipWilliamson in the 1950s. A wonderful primitive Southern shorebird.

FFEEEEDDIINNGG RREEDD KKNNOOTT - Northampton County, Virginia, c. 1875.Wonderful old surface with the sharpest wing-tail carving I’veever seen. The undersurface at the end of the tail is extremelyconcave. A unique example.

HHUUDDSSOONNIIAANN CCUURRLLEEWW - McCarthy family, Cape May,New Jersey, c. 1905. Excellent posture. Good dryoriginal paint.

SSLLEEEEPPIINNGG BBRROOAADDBBIILLLL - Obediah Verity, Seaford, Long Island, New York, c. 1880. An iconic Long Island sculpture. Carved from a solid piece of cedar – the head and body are one piece. The onlyknown example of its type. Pictured Plate 78, “American Bird Decoys,” by Mackey. Probably the rarest of Long Island decoys.

DEPARTMENTS

SHOWSTOPS • 16Busy fall season offered a myriad of choices

CALENDAR • 22Upcoming shows, auctions and vintage competitions

MUSEUM NEWS • 30Seabrook’s “counterfeits” on display

REVIEWS • 32New books on Great Lakes, New Jersey decoys

CLASSIFIEDS • 44Buy, sell and swap your favorites

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011 • Volume 35, Number 5

DECOYMAGAZINEEDITOR & PUBLISHER

Joe Engers

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSAllen LinkchorstDonna TonelliJim Trimble

CONTRIBUTING WRITERST. Thompson Bosworth

Richard CowanShirley Dashner

Jon DeeterCharles FrankDick Gove

Gene & Linda KangasRichard LaFountain

Preston LoweDick McIntyreJamie Reason

C. John Sullivan Jr.Ronald SwansonChad Tragakis

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERHenry Fleckenstein Jr.

GRAPHIC DESIGNKaren O’Keefe/Captive Designs

Senior Designer

Drew Hawkins/In-house CreativeGraphic Designer

PRINTERSundance Press

Decoy Magazine (ISSN 1055-0364) (USPS 004192) ispublished bi-monthly plus an additional issue. Copyright 2011 by Decoy Magazine, 102 Second St.,Lewes, DE 19958. All rights reserved. No materialmay be reproduced without the written permissionof the publisher. Sub scrip tions: In U.S., $40 annu-ally; in Canada, $55 (U.S. funds) annually (air mail);in Europe and Asia, $75 annually (air mail). Sam-ples and back issues, $10.95 each, $12 overseas. Allsubscriptions must be paid in advance. Periodicalspostage paid at Lewes, Delaware and at an additionalmailing office. POSTMASTER: Send addresschanges to: Decoy Magazine, P.O. Box 787, Lewes,DE 19958, (302) 644-9001; Fax (302) 644-9003.

EDITORIAL & ADVERTISING DEADLINES

November/December - January 13, 20122011 Year In Review - February 10, 2012

January/February - March 9, 2012

Visit Decoy Magazine’s site at:www.DecoyMag.com

ON THE COVER

Since at least 1987 collectors assumed thata group of magnificent swan decoys werecarved by the Cockey family of Kent Island,Maryland, even though clues surfaced asearly as 1991 that the attribution was incor-rect. Thanks to additional research, and asecond look at the documentation at theMaryland Historical Society, who had onedonated to them in 1964, it’s now been determined they were carved by Al Bell, aBaltimore duck hunter and decoy maker.

COLLECTOR PROFILE: GEORGE & MIRIAM VAN WALLEGHEM • 8Passionately embracing their collection everyday

CHESAPEAKE WILDFOWL EXPO • 15Antique Decoy Competition winners

SNAPSHOTS • 20Photos from the Waterfowl Festival

COVER STORY • 24Al Bell – The rightful maker of the famous “Cockey swan decoys”

COLLECTORS CORNER • 31Auction Hunters bag “rig” of antique decoy

FRANK & FRANK AUCTION • 40Rare Ward brothers wood duck tops the charts

GUYETTE, SCHMIDT & DEETER AUCTION• 40Crowell redhead stands above its peers

September/October 2011 3

4 Decoy Magazine

PUBLISHER’SNOTE

When we published the first issue ofDecoy Magazine in fall of 1979, we debuted atthe Waterfowl Festival in Easton, Maryland.There was such a level of anticipation andpositive energy evident in the building andthroughout the town that it was hard not toget swept up in the excitement of it all.

There were exhibitors in numerous sitesthroughout the town, with buses providingtransportation between them. The businessesdecorated their windows with waterfowl re-lated effects, vendors shucked oysters in thestreets, the trees were full of color and geeseflew overhead. There were myriads of restau-rants and watering holes to choose from andcollectors and enthusiasts congregated forlunch, dinner or a nightcap.

As this was our introduction to decoy col-lecting, I’ve always had a soft spot for thisshow and eagerly await it each year. Now withthe two-day Guyette & Schmidt (and nowDeeter) auction preceding the event, it makesfor nearly a week-long celebration.

We left Lewes on Tuesday morning andcrossed the peninsula on a beautiful sunnyday. We were escorted along the way by theoccasional flock of migrating geese, a signalit’s that time of year. We arrived at the TalbotCounty Community Center, the site of theauction, to set up for three days of the buy,swap and sell that’s held in coordination withthe sale. By the time we arrived most of the60 or so vendors were already set up, and weunderstand that roughly an equal numberwere encamped in a parking lot on one side ofthe building. It all adds to the success of theauction.

Quite a bit of business takes place onopening day, often among the vendors andeventually the auction crowd that arrives intime for the 6:00 p.m. preview. There was anexcellent turnout for the initial inspection,and many took advantage of the open bar andexcellent hors d’oeuvres that the auctionhouse generously provided. For some ambi-tious folks, it sufficed for dinner.

A good crowd turned out for the two dayauction and a strong variety of quality birdswere available on the exhibitor tables and atthe sale. In many ways, the inventory is better

Still worth the excitement

(Continued on page 20)

D E C O YR E S T O R A T I O N

Restoring the common and the RAREPaul Fortin

Extensive experience with decoys and carvers from all regions of the U.S. and CanadaSPECIALIZING IN MASON FACTORY DECOYS

P.O.BOX 713 • HANSON, MA 02341 • 781-447-2614

Exceptional Mason Goose

With a common restoration problem -”poor in use repair”10D nails, glued offset alignment and missing neck filler

C E L E B R A T I N G A M E R I C A ’ S F I N E S T F O L K A R T

� Articles on decoys and decoy makers from the golden age of waterfowling

� Features on contemporary decoy carvers,spearfishing decoys and sporting collectibles

� Complete decoy auction coverage

� Classified section for buying, selling and trading

� Calendar of upcoming decoy shows and auctions

� Color photographs of over 100 decoys

To Order, send check or money order to:DECOY MAGAZINE • P.O. Box 787, Lewes, DE 19958

(302) 644-9001 • Fax (302) 644-9003 • E-Mail: [email protected]

� 1 Year, 7 Issues $40.00� 2 Years, 14 Issues $72.00

� Canada, 1 Year $55.00� Canada, 2 Years $100.00

� Foreign Subscriptions, Per Year $75.00

see our website at www.decoymag.com

George leaned forward and confided in his friendly soft-spoken voice, “Miriam just loves duck decoys. Infact, she might like them more than I do,” he said.“And she’s grown to enjoy fish decoys even better thanI ever thought she would.” Miriam and George havebeen happily married since 1959, and have joined visions to put together a wonderful collection, blendingwaterfowl and fish decoys with complementary folkand contemporary art. Mornings often begin with casual observations and discussions: “George did younotice the way the sunlight hits the Schweikart’s wing tips?” Or, “Miriam what do you think about the Quillin pintail coming up at auction compared toour teal?”

C O L L E C T O R P R O F I L EC O L L E C T O R P R O F I L E

GROSSE POINTE WOODS, MICHIGAN

Passionately embracing their collection every day

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8 Decoy Magazine

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George and MiriamVan Walleghem


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The collection is integral to their lifeand home environment. They havetotally surrounded themselves withart and passionately embrace itevery day.

While many people have gotten involvedin decoy collecting because of their love ofhunting, George and Miriam Van Wal-leghem’s entry into this avocation in the mid-1960s had a somewhat ironic twist. Georgeowned a restaurant in St. Clair Shores, Michi-gan and wanted to pursue his interest inpheasant hunting. However, he soon realizedthat this activity took him away from his fam-ily and business far too long each time. AndGeorge admits to actually hitting only a fewpheasants because, “I was a terrible shot.” Sohe decided duck hunting might bemore practical due to the prox-imity of Lake St. Clair and theability to pursue this hobby at hisleisure and in his spare time.

To facilitate his interest, George en-gaged respected outdoorsman and decoy col-lector Ed DeNavarre as a guide. As Georgepursued this new hobby, however, he realizedthat it was his love of the outdoors that in-terested him more than the actual hunting.But Ed wasn’t through with George yet, as hethen introduced him to duck hunting’s coun-

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HHoollll ooww CCaannaaddaa ggoooossee bbyy JJaacckk RReeeevveess ooff LLoonngg PPooiinntt,, OOnnttaarr iioo,, ccaa .. 11993300..

BY LINDA KANGAS

terpart. Then he guided George and Miriamthrough acquiring the initial pieces thatformed the foundation of the Van Wal-leghems’ decoy collection.

“George is a real outdoorsman,” Miriamremarked. “He had sail boats and used to likebeing out in the worst weather! In the fallhe’d tell me, ‘You have to see these ducks,Miriam, you can see thousands rafting in themiddle of the lake!’” Miriam loved sailing andwas thrilled when together they watched theenchanting throngs of wild ducks and geeseflocking noisily in the air then settling ontothe welcoming waters. Collecting sculpturalinterpretations of beautiful avian creatureswas a natural development within this cou-ple’s aesthetic perceptions.

Their first decoys were two canvasbackspurchased from the rig of famed carver Fer-dinand Bach of St. Clair Shores, regarded asone of the region’s exemplary makers. Ed in-formed them about a sale of decoys from theSt. Clair Flats Shooting Company that Bar-ney Crandall and Judge Harry M. Sietz Jr.were holding at the Holiday Inn in Monroe,Michigan. Charmed by the selections, theypurchased 15 outstanding Canadian duckscarved in the late 1800s. They were added toa half dozen pieces they had already acquired,but Miriam and George agreed that the Bachcans were “our first real find.”

Ed was also responsible for introducing

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FFiisshh ddeeccooyyss bbyy JJaammeess RRooss iinn..

10 Decoy Magazine

them to another very influential collector,Ed Childs. He told them, “No collectionwould be complete without some low headNate Quillin redheads and Ed Childs is theonly person with any good ones.” Childsdid indeed have great examples of the de-coys they were seeking, but he wasn’t in-terested in selling. When Ed passed away,George and Miriam secured two of the rareQuillins from his widow.

As their interest evolved in the early1970s to encompass folk art in general,George and Miriam connected withMichael Hall, an astute and well-regardedartist, collector and Resident Sculptor atThe Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloom-field Hills, Michigan. “We first metMichael when he came to our home inGrosse Pointe Woods to look at our col-lection,” Miriam reminisces. “He reallyhelped us shape our current view of duck

decoys as pieces of art and true sculpture.When we had a chance to see his collection,it gave us an appreciation for just how in-credible these pieces could be and motivatedus to think about how we could acquire de-coys from the same carvers who were in hiscollection.”

George and Miriam also became intriguedwith fish decoys after meeting Charlie Hartand Jerry Adams in the early 1980s and

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quickly began finding first-class examples ofthose for their growing collection. Georgespoke up, “We didn’t have any fish when wefirst heard that Charlie had some nice ones.Miriam and I went to his home and were sosurprised at the beauty of them! We wereamazed how wonderful they were! We fell inlove with the Vandenbosshe the first time wesaw it. I told Charlie we just wanted to look,and that was the plan, but we ended up buy-ing 20 to 30 fish over the next several years.We were enthralled by the fish.”

“There are an awful lot of people who in-fluenced us as collectors,” says George. “JimFoote (who lived nearby) used to host meet-ings for local collectors which helped us meetothers who were interested and that extendedour contacts. We asked Joe Tonelli to repre-sent us at an auction for some shorebirds be-cause we were novices, and he became a goodfriend. Ron Sharp has been a great friend andadvisor as we built our collection over theyears and we’ve spent many a show togethersearching for treasures.”

From that first investment of $55 each forthe Bach canvasbacks, the Van Walleghemshave assembled a folk art collection that is theenvy of many. Their pieces are frequently fea-tured in books and articles about folk art anddecoy collecting. At the heart of their collec-tion are the ducks borne out of George’s ini-tial foray into duck hunting. They’ve enjoyedtraveling to shows, meeting other collectors,buying unique and rare pieces along the way.Miriam says, “I think the ducks are unbeliev-able! There were a few men out of thousandswho were incredible craftsmen. We pickedthe decoys from the talented ones we loved.HHooll llooww ff iisshh ddeeccooyyss wwiitthh ffeeaatthheerr ss ffoorr ff iinnss bbyy CChhaarr ll eess KKeell llmmaann ooff MMiicchhiiggaann..


12 Decoy Magazine

We look at them all the time and they getmore beautiful to us.” And George insists,“Miriam has kept me going all these years. Wejust love the art of it.”

Yet more than any single piece they’ve everacquired, George and Miriam sincerely insist,their greatest pleasure is the friends they havemade who inspired their continued enthusi-asm.

Miriam and George each possess an artis-tic soul. Early on Miriam studied at the Soci-ety of Arts & Crafts in Detroit for four to fiveyears. She worked in advertising and then atthe Knoll Showroom of Contemporary Fur-niture in Birmingham where, after marrying,the couple chose all their early furniture. Bothwere interested in collecting art, but as ayoung couple starting out they were lookingfor the right match for their interests andbudget. Their personalities seem to havemelded quickly and more deeply because oftheir sensitive and spirited natures.

They began collecting Michigan painters,and were especially taken with the work ofSarkis Sarkisian, who had been the Directorof the Society of Arts & Crafts while Miriam

was a student and was considered the bestMichigan painter. “We have acquired nearlyhalf a dozen of Sarkis’ works over the years,”enthused Miriam, “and many landscapes andanimal watercolors of Charles Culver, an-other teacher at the Society.” A treasured“Fawn” by Culver was originally found in ahunting lodge allowing Miriam and Georgeto buy it from a dealer while in Chicago. Con-

temporary sculpture captured them as well.One intriguing figural piece was designed byAl Pepzinski constructed entirely with nails.Al was a fellow student at the Center for Cre-ative Studies in Detroit where Miriam tookpottery classes in the mid 1960s. “Early onGeorge and I agreed most of the time onpieces we considered buying; but now, wemesh ever so well!”

“George has always had an intuitive senseof beauty,” Miriam shared admiringly. Shetalked of George’s passion for landscaping,designing and refining their outdoor envi-ronment with skill and beauty year after year.As a restaurateur George’s The Round Tablewas a destination, bringing families togetherfor 40 years. He had a loyal staff, many stayingwith him for over two decades. George cre-ated entirely homemade meals, everythingmade from scratch.

“It’s truly amazing,” Miriam thinks back,“that we have been able to acquire this trulyincredible collection. For 40 years my dearhusband worked seven days a week, closingthe restaurant late in the evenings. Our firstpriority was always our family, our wonderfulchildren Ian, Paul and Anna. Oldest son Ianwas the horseman, competing and winningequestrian events. Paul and Anna began ten-nis lessons around six years of age. For years Ichauffeured them to every lesson, practice,and game. They went to college on tennisscholarships. How George and I found thetime to find and buy wonderful art, I justdon’t know. But we did. I guess we just tookevery opportunity to spend time together.The children loved everything we broughthome, and always felt they had value.” Ofcourse, the family kept paintings and sculp-ture, ducks, fish and folk art throughout theirentire home, and the children grew to havefavorites.

Of the many pieces that “got away,” onewas most painful. They heard that a rare GusWilson tiger was coming up for auction inMaine, and when they saw it in person theydecided they wanted it. With no long termplanning and no thought of how to pay for it,Miriam and George carefully and excitedlybid at $10,000 and followed it up to $20,000plus. They were definitely going home withthis tiger! As the price rose, they took a

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CCooppppeerr hhoorrssee wweeaatthheerrvvaannee bbyy JJ..AA.. JJeewweellll && CCoo..

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breath. The bid rose again and the auction-eer said, “Sold!” Without a chance to re-spond, without hearing any “Going, going,gone!” the tiger was gone.

An important Nathan Cobb snaky neckCanada goose, however, was their most heart-breaking loss. They traveled to California at-tending a decoy show and a Bourne auctionwhile there. It was the only bird they were in-terested in and they wanted to take it home.Cobb geese were going around $17,000-22,000 at the time and George and Miriamwere prepared to buy. No way was it going toget away. But the bidding climbed higher andhigher through $20,000 into the $30,000swith Dr. Jim McCleery taking it home toTexas. Miriam and George were devastated,and sat in their seats stifled and depressed.They later realized it didn’t matter how muchmoney they had put aside for this bird, it hadno chance to go home with them to Michi-gan.

Miriam and George’s discriminating con-noisseurship grew from their personal loveand lasting friendship and that of their chil-dren. And what do the walls hear in the VanWalleghem home? “George, can you believethat black duck! Can you believe that fish!”Each moment’s love and enthusiasm and the passionate embrace of art in their lives,brings smiles to their faces and warmth intheir hearts

Linda Kangas is co-author of “Great LakesDecoy Interpretations” and can be contactedat www.GreatLakesDecoys.com.


DDeeccoorraattii vvee tteerrnn ppllaaqquuee bbyy BBeenn SScchhmmiiddtt ooffCCeenntteerr lliinnee ,, MMiicchhiiggaann,, ccaa.. 11994400..

C a p t a i n O l s e n • B l a c k B r a n t

First WebsiteSpecializing in Vintage Decoys of the Pacific Coast

M I C A H B R O S N A N916-742-1612

www.WestCoast-Decoys.com

W W W . S E D G E I S L A N D D E C O Y S . C O M

Bill & Barbara [email protected]

C H E C K O U T O U R S E L E C T I O N O F Q U A L I T Y D E C O Y S O N - L I N E A T

Bill & Barbara [email protected]

S H O W S T O P SS H O W S T O P S

Chesapeake Wildfowl ExpoSalisbury, MarylandOctober 7-8, 2011

The annual Wildfowl Expo at the WardMuseum attracts both collectors and carvers,with the collectors partaking in a two-day buy,swap and sell in the adjoining parking lot andthe carvers competing for prizes behind themuseum and on Schumaker Pond. Since theentire show is an outdoors event, the weatherplays a crucial part in its success, and this yearit was perfect.

The show kicks off on Friday morningwith about 30 vendors setting out their birdsin the sun-drenched parking lot. The majorityof the exhibitors were from the mid-Atlanticregion, and most of them were from the Del-marva Pennisula, so most of the offeringswere from the Chesapeake Bay and New Jer-sey. Three of the auction houses – Frank &Frank, Copley and Guyette and Schmidt –previewed decoys for their upcoming auc-tions, and a number of contemporary carversoffered their work for sale.

Traffic was never overwhelming duringthe two days in the parking lot, but there wasnonetheless a steady turnout that providedopportunities for sales, and a fair handful ofdecoys changed hands, particularly for thoseoffering more affordable decoys. We werepleased to sign up six new subscribers andsold a good handful of books and back issues.And met a few new collectors just recently at-tracted to decoys.

At the end of the opening day many stayfor the Museum’s annual pig roast, heldunder a tent behind the museum. While

most feasted on pulled pork, coleslaw andbaked beans, Lora Bottinelli, the executive di-rector of the museum, announced that theWard Museum of Wildfowl Art had just beenaccredited by the American Association ofMuseums, the premier national recognitionthat a museum can be receive. We join in con-gratulating them on their accomplishment.

On Saturday morning collectors bring inentries for the Antique Decoy Competition,which this year featured canvasbacks in tenseparate geographic categories. There are noofficial judges, as everyone who enters a decoygets a vote. Only eight of the categories re-ceived entrants, with a pair of high head can-vasbacks by Charles Nelson Barnard – one ofthree pairs in the competition – from the col-lection of John Sullivan Jr. winning the bestof show award. We’ve pictured all the win-ners, which will be on display at the museumthrough spring 2012.

Board member and long-time collectorHenry Stansbury gave a seminar on the Bal-timore game market on Friday and Saturdayafternoon, which unfortunately we were un-able to attend. The Museum was open free ofcharge over the weekend and many took thetime to visit their collection. Since theweather was so beautiful, we hung out in theparking lot until mid-afternoon, and made afew additional sales during that time. Whenwe finally packed up the truck to head forhome, only Art Raine and Scott Richardsonwere still open for business, determined to getthat last sale.

For information on the Chesapeake Wilfowl Expo or the Ward Museum, call (410) 742-4988 or visit www.wardmuseum.org.

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14 Decoy Magazine

Vintage Hunting & FishingCOLLECTIBLES SHOW

FIFTH ANNUAL

Saturday, January 28, 20129am - 4pm • Early Bird’s 8am

Admission $6 • Early Bird Admission $15

Level Volunteer Fire Hall3633 Level Village Road

Havre de Grace, Maryland

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SHOT SHELL BOXESSPORTING ARTOYSTER CANS

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FEATURING

Food & Drinks Available • Approximatley 100 TablesProceeds to Benefit

Level Fire Co. & Havre de Grace Decoy MuseumFor more information contact:

Pat Vincenti (410) 734-6238 Chuck Usilton (410) 378-3528

EAST COAST DECOYCOLLECTORS

Buy, Sell & SwapApril 12-14, 2012In rooms - rain or shine

St. Michaels Motor Inn(Best Western)St. Michael's, MD

410-745-3333 (Mention Event)

Saturday late afternoon/eveningmeeting & cookout

For more information contact John Clayton 410-745-2955

John@njdecoysor Jim Trimble 703-768-7264

[email protected] WELCOME · Free Decoy Appraisals

BUY-SELLTRADE

July/August 2007 15

Chesapeake Wildlife Expo 2011AntiqueDecoyCompetitionWinners

Best of ShowBest of Show

Best Great Lakes Canvasback Tom Chambers pair

VANCE STRAUSBURG COLLECTION

Best Upper ChesapeakeBay Canvasback

PHOTOS COURTESY WARD MUSEUM

Best Illinois River Canvasback Bert Graves drake

BILL DOGGART COLLECTION

Best North Carolina Canvasback Ned Burgess drake

JIM TRIMBLE COLLECTION

Best Virginia Canvasback Ira Hudson pair

HENRY STANSBURY COLLECTION

Best Crisfield Canvasback Ward brothers hen

VANCE STRAUSBURG COLLECTION

Best Delaware River Canvasback John McLoughlin drakeBILL DOGGART COLLECTION

Best New England Canvasback Shang Wheeler sleeping hen

ALAN HAID COLLECTION

Charles Nelson Barnard high head pairC. JOHN SULLIVAN JR COLLECTION

16 Decoy Magazine

34th annual LouisianaWildfowl Festival Mandeville, Louisiana October 8-9, 2011

The Louisiana Wildfowl Festival, held atthe Castine Center in Mandeville on thenorth shore of Lake Ponchartrain and just ashort drive across the Causeway from NewOrleans, is an event that attracts bothcarvers and collectors. Sponsored by theLouisiana Wildfowl Carvers and CollectorsGuild, its purpose is to promote and pre-serve Louisiana’s rich decoy carving her-itage.

Although attendance seemed down onopening day, possibly due to the collegefootball game in nearby Baton Rouge (LSUdefeated Florida), several veteran Louisianacollectors showed up to participate in theantique decoy competition. This year thespecies was pintails, and there were numer-ous entries, including two different styles ofdrakes by Mark Whipple, a MitchellLafrance hen and drakes by Alfred Hebertand Sidney Foret, among many others. Thethree judges – Gary Lipham, Jan Junker andWendell Nunez – awarded this year’s blue

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ribbon to Roger Bourgeois, who owned thewinning Whipple pintail.

Many New Orleans area carvers werepresent, including Rock Zeringue, CalKingsmill and Dr. Walter Mason. In addi-tion to his own carvings – he displayed ex-amples made over four decades - Dr. Masonbrought quite a few vintage birds, includinga mallard by Pierre Autin that’s pictured in“Louisiana Duck Decoys” by Charles Frank.Now retired, D. Mason still hunts over hisown hand crafted decoys. He also displayeda poster sized enlargement of an old photo-graph of Charles Franks watching Jules E.Frederick chop out a cypress root decoy.Carver and collector Peter Ward had a hand-ful of old decoys for sale as well.

Brian Cheramie, the author of“Louisiana Lures and Legends,” dropped bythe show on Sunday morning and receivedmany congratulations for putting togetherthe recent Louisiana decoy exhibit at the Na-tional Antique Decoy Show this past Aprilin St. Charles, Illinois.

Although it’s a relatively small regionalshow, and primarily a carver’s event, it’s al-ways fun to attend to catch up on the latestLouisiana decoy news. Several local restau-rants offer fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood and

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traditional New Orleans cuisine. And a visitto that great city is just a short drive across theCauseway. For information about next year’sshow visit LWCCG.com.

- Bruce Lowell

44th annual Upper ShoreDecoy Show Charlestown, MarylandOctober 21-22, 2011

The Upper Shore Decoy Show, sponsoredby the The Upper Bay Museum in nearbyNorth East, Maryland and billed as the“longest continuously running decoy show inthe United States” was held for the thirdstraight year in a heated tent behind the his-toric Wellwood Club – now a restaurant - onthe shores of the North East River. Havinghosted many former presidents and digni-

taries and serving as a launching point to theSusquehanna Flats for many late 19th andearly 20th century Cecil County decoy mak-ers and duck hunters, it is a fitting and sceniclocation for a decoy show.

The two-day show kicks off on Friday af-ternoon with a fundraising auction and wineand cheese reception. Roughly 30 vendors,about a dozen selling antique decoys, set upfor the weekend, and a small but enthusiasticcrowd turned out for the opening night, tak-ing advantage of the opportunity to have thefirst pick at the inventory for sale. Not sur-prisingly, we did well over half our businessthat evening, with book sales particularlystrong. However the auction results were welloff previous years, as most of the offeringswere local oriented and mostly contemporary,and the remaining audience seemed hesitantto bid.

As in year’s past, the show committeeprinted an informative and entertainingbooklet that was given to all exhibitors andattendees during the show. It included an ar-ticle on Horace Graham, the grandnephewof John B. Graham, the earliest documentedcarver of Cecil County decoys. Horaceworked as a carpenter until he retired in1955, when he began making decoys in thebasement of his home until his death in1978. A large collection of his work was re-cently donated to The Upper Bay Museum.The booklet also included an interesting arti-cle on Upper Chesapeake Duck Hunting thathad been published in an 1856 guidebook of

the Philadelphia, Wilmington and BaltimoreRailroad, the forerunner of the PennsylvaniaRailroad. We appreciate their efforts.

For the first time the show committeestaged an old decoy contest, held at noon onSaturday, with $100 cash prizes awarded tothe Best Will Heverin Decoy and the BestCecil County Bluebill. We assisted in thejudging. It was surprising that more decoysweren’t entered in the competition, as Hev-erin was by far the most prolific of the CecilCounty carvers, although bluebills in generalare harder to come by. Nonetheless we did getto handle a few good old decoys and expectthe numbers of entries to increase once morecollectors are aware of the contest. We’ve pic-tured the owners with their winning decoys.

Maybe it was a combination of the beau-tiful sunny weather and a continuing dismaleconomy, but the turnout for the weekendwas overall disappointing. All in all we werepleased with sales, as we sold our share of sub-scriptions and back issues, more than enoughto warrant our return. But the lack of atten-dance, particularly by Saturday afternoon, didput a damper on the weekend. And that’s ashame, as we really like the location of thisshow and would like to see it grow. The tablefees are more than reasonable and the com-plimentary reception on Friday and the com-plimentary breakfast for the exhibitors onSaturday are appreciated.

For more information on next year’s show,contact Paul Shertz at (302) 834-8427 [email protected].

Canadian Decoy & Outdoor Collectibles ShowNiagara Falls, OntarioOctober 29-30, 2011

The fall foliage was still hanging on to itsglory as we headed north through Pennsylva-nia and Upstate New York to Niagara Falls,Ontario for the annual Canadian Decoy &Outdoor Collectibles Show, our once a yearventure north of the border to visit our Cana-dian friends.

Held at the Best Western Cairn CroftHotel, on Lundy’s Lane deep in the heart ofthe tourist district, this was the first year atthis new location.

We drove up on Friday, passing throughBuffalo, and stopped to visit Chris Moribella,who lives just ten minutes off the interstate.We’ve known Chris, a long time subscriberand collector, to be a big fan of Canadian de-coys, having sold him one or two over theyears, but had no idea of the breadth of hiscollection until our visit.

He decided to specialize in Canadian birdsas they were easily accessible, being just 15minutes from the border. And some years agothe exchange rate was very favorable, makinghis chase even more rewarding. There were atleast a dozen Nova Scotia eiders, and probablyas many mergansers. There were individualshelves devoted to George Warin, J.R. Wellsand the Reeves family. And he certainly hadrigs of Ducharme canvasbacks and Prince Ed-ward Island geese. Our favorite was one ofthose Long Point hissing Canada geese, lightas a feather and with a wonderful patina.

Then it was off to the border, across thePeace Bridge into Canada. It took a long timeto explain to the border agents what a decoyshow was all about and why I would be goingthere. I particularly alarmed them when Imentioned people bringing “birds” to theshow – parrots, they asked. Finally they al-lowed me to proceed and I arrived after dark.

The events begin on Saturday with amorning auction by Simpsons auction house.It included decoys, fishing tackle and miscel-laneous sporting memorabilia. Most of theitems were of Canadian origin. There wasn’tanything in particular that caught my fancy,so I headed off with Jon Deeter, the co-ownerof the decoy firm Guyette, Schmidt & Deeter,for a drive down to the falls and along theriver. It is truly an awesome sight, and bestseen from the Canadian side, which directlyfaces the falls. We continued on to the charm-ing historic town of Niagara on the Lake,where we stopped and had lunch. It was awonderful diversion.

We arrived back at the hotel at about theend of the auction and just an hour or so be-fore the cocktail party, so decided to wander

the hotel to check for open rooms. Therewere about a dozen or so with their doorsopen, but unfortunately they were spread outon four floors of the building. Next year theshow committee is going to find out whowishes to participate in room to room trad-ing and congregate them on one or twofloors. Good idea.

The cocktail party, always a pleasurable so-cial gathering, doubles as a membership meet-ing. Jon Deeter generously paid for thedrinks. Afterwards most headed for thelounge, where the committee had set asideabout 40 seats for a group dinner. It wasn’t asnice as the buffet at the old location – we sim-ply ordered off the menu – but it was a goodmeal nonetheless. After roaming the hallsand congregating in the rooms for a fewhours that evening, a small but dedicatedgroup headed to the bar to watch a parade ofHalloween ghouls and goblins. We heard itwas quite the crowd.

There were about 30 dealers for the Sun-day show, most Canadian but with a largerturnout from the states than in previousyears, likely due to the show moving closer tothem. However not one dealer from Quebecset up this year, reportedly because the showmoved further from them. We missed theirpresence and hope they make it next year.

Each year the show committee puts up afirst class exhibit, and this year there were two.The first was a display of Burlington Bay de-coys, which were featured in a recent issue ofDecoy Magazine in an article by Pete Munger.He even brought a “screening” boat to in-clude in the display. Roger Young put to-gether an impressive exhibit of canoe models

and sample paddles and gave an informativetalk on the subject around noon.

There were also two antique decoy com-petitions, one featuring Canadian canvas-backs and the other Ken Anger decoys. Awonderful canvasback by John Morris ofHamilton from the collection of Paul Briscotook one first place award and an Anger red-head from the collection of Robin Craig tookthe other. The winners are chosen by popularvote, and we cast ours for a canvasback byFrank Kortrite, also from Robin’s collection,and an Anger bufflehead hen from the col-lection of Walt Hallbauer.

The majority of activity at this show takesplace from roughly the opening bell untilnoon, and there was a good turnout for mostof the morning and quite a few birds wereseen changing hands. We signed up a few newsubscribers and sold quite a few back issuesfeaturing Canadian decoys. Gene and LindaKangas were busy selling copies of their latestbook, “Great Lake Decoy Interpretations”(see our review on page 32).

Although most shows have an openingand closing time, they sort of leave it openhere – as long as there’s activity going on thedealers will stay in place. By one many hadstarted to prepare for their exit. By two wewere packed and ready for that long drivehome. As we crossed the Rainbow Bridge,with the falls directly below us, we looked for-ward to returning next year.

For more information on the CanadianDecoy & Outdoor Collectibles Associationand next year’s show, visit their website atwww.canadiandecoy.com.

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18 Decoy Magazine

If you collect decoys, see the list of dealers that have committed to making the switch at this earlydate. We look forward to seeing you in March and will continue to bring you all the events we havehad in the past. Keep watching www.greatlakesdecoyassociation.com for updates or call one ofthe contacts below.

Great Lakes Decoy AssociationAnnual Show in Westlake, Ohio

March 22-24, 2012

Collector rooms reserve through the Holiday Inn, Phone: 1-440-871-6000 Dealer Rooms and/or membership information contact one of the following: Ken Cole 810-845-2434, [email protected] Marty Hanson 952-210-9377, [email protected] Gene & Linda Kangas 440-352-5321, [email protected]

Make No Mistake!This is the decoy show to attend in Ohio!

Russ AllenCarol BarnesFrank BarronAndrew Tom BearyLee BontragerGreg BraunPaul BriscoRobert BrownBob BurgerBurt CampbellChris ChamblinKen ColeJohn CollierWilliam CordreyJeff CrossDean Dashner

Gary DavisJon DeeterDom DiCampliGuy DiPlacidoJoe EngersDave FannonDennis ForthoferSteve FoxJoe GargaglianoGreg GoliczJerry GranthamAlan HaidGary HallWalt HallbauerMarty HansonTed Harmon

Jeff HayBen HeinemannJack HernCalvin HoeftTom HumberstoneBob JamesEd JohnstonPhil JonesArnie KahntPat KaneGene & Linda KangasDave KneeboneOliver LawsonRandy MartalockBill MasengarbDick McIntyre

Bob MorelandAllen MuhicDale NowlandSteve O'BrienLou PetruccoArt RaineTom ReedBill RigsbeeJon RitchieKeith SalkeldFritz ScottCliff ScottJeff SeregnyTom ShumakerTim SiegerPete Siggelko

Ira SkeesJohn StaabKen SteinBill StoutGeorge StrunkConrad SundeenMike SuzorJoe TonelliJoe Van WieDick WaltersVaughn WaltersWayne WildschutJack WilkieTom WinstelGreg WoodlandDan Yundt

Thursday-Saturday: room to room Sales Thursday: Vintage Decoy Seminar 8:00 p.m. Corkers Lounge Friday: Guyette and Schmidt Auction 12:00 p.m. Pool Area Saturday: Vintage Decoy Contest 8:00 a.m. Corkers LoungeSponsored by Martin Hanson Decoys

20 Decoy Magazine

PUBLISHERS NOTE(Continued from page 4)

than at the actual Waterfowl Festival itself asmany exhibitors set up here then go home.Quite a number of decoys were seen chang-ing hands.

There was also a strong response to thebirds in the auction, as the sale grossedroughly $2 million, topped by a decorativestanding redhead by Elmer Crowell that soldto a phone bidder for $247,250, nearly dou-ble the amount paid for a John Williamsswan at $131,500, although both had identi-cal estimates ($172,500). The Southern de-coys provided most of the strength in theauction, although there were excellent ex-amples from most regions of the country.

(See our complete auction coverage on page40.)

On Wednesday night John Sullivan, anUpper Chesapeake Bay waterfowl historianand the director of operations at the Havrede Grace Decoy Museum, gave a talk at alocal antique shop on his favorite topic.After telling the audience how he got at-tracted to collecting and dispersed some sto-ries of the famous gun clubs of the area thathe’s researched, he introduced a new bit ofinformation that may identify the actualmaker of the racy swan decoys that have beenattributed to the Cockey family of Kent Is-land, Maryland. (One sold at the auction for$20,125.) That led to the cover story that he’scontributed for this issue (see page 24).

On Thursday we pack up at the commu-nity center and move to the high school to

set up for the three-day Waterfowl Festival.Although it looked like rain most of the day,it never materialized until later that evening.Although it was crisp and breezy for the open-ing day on Friday, the weather stayed beauti-ful throughout the weekend.

The opening day on Friday is always thebusiest part of the weekend. When the doorsopen at 10 a.m. a crowd surges in and holdssteady until mid-afternoon. The exhibitorsare about evenly split between those sellingold birds and contemporary carvers. All threeof the major decoy auction houses – CopleyFine Art Auctions, Decoys Unlimited andGuyette, Schmidt & Deeter – were exhibitingbirds for their next sale and taking consign-ments. Along with a selection of old decoys,we bring plenty of books and magazines andsold quite a good number of back issues fea-

SNAPSHOTSof the

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2011


turing Chesapeake Bay area decoys. One of our favorite parts of the show is

the Artifacts Display, which is organizedyearly by Kim Newcomb. It’s a wonderful op-portunity to see dozens and dozens of qual-ity decoys from private collections. Thisyear’s displays were excellent.

Both the Ward Museum and the Chesa-peake Bay Maritime Museum provided birdsfor the exhibit. Baltimore collector Bill Pughdisplayed a large selection of decoys from theCockey family. Sam Dyke, the curator of theWard Museum, displayed about 20 brant de-coys made by six different Chincoteague, Vir-ginia makers.

Maryland collector Bob Jester combinedforces with Virginia collector Rick Kellum toput together a display of Eastern Shore bar-rier island decoys, from Ocean City, Mary-

land to Cape Charles, Virginia. Eddie Deanof nearby Hoopers Island displayed decoys byEd Phillips of Cambridge, Maryland. BillStyrker put together a group of decoratives bythe Ward brothers. And that’s just a sam-pling.

One of the more interesting exhibits wasput together by the Department of NaturalResources police that included a large lightboat cannon and machine gun that was usedduring the 19th century “oyster wars” on theChesapeake Bay. It had been mounted on thedeck of the steam powered “Lelia” and wasused on unwelcomed dredging vessels thatsailed into Maryland waters illegally to har-vest oysters.

Although this show has the best atten-dance of any we attend, the numbers don’tcompare to year’s past. But that’s generally

the case across the board. And Sunday, thelast day of a long week, can be a bit quiet. Yetjust about everyone we spoke to were pleasedwith sales throughout the week. We even hadour last big sale at 3:45 p.m. on Sunday, just15 minutes before the show officially ended.If you’ve never been to the Waterfowl Festi-val you need to include it in your plans.There’s plenty to get excited about.

By the time you’re reading this we’ll havecompleted our final show of the season,about two dozen in all. We’re ready for ashort break for the holidays, but nonethelesswe’ve already made plans well into 2012. Wehope to see you there too. In the meantime,have a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidaysand a safe and healthy New Year.

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22 Decoy Magazine

FEBRUARY

3-42012 Minnesota Decoy Show sponsored bythe Minnesota Decoy Collectors Associationand held at the Ramada Mall of America inBloomington, Minnesota. Room to roomtrading on Wednesday and Thursday. Con-tact: John Southworth (651) 455-7114 orLarry Thomforde (507) 732-7074 or visitwww.mndecoycollectors.com.

10-1217th annual East Carolina Wildfowl Art Fes-tival to be held at the Washington Civic Cen-ter in Washington, North Carolina. Contact:Dave Gossett at (252) 946-2897 or visitwww.eastcarolinawildfowlguild.com.

11-122012 California Open Wildlife Art Festivalto be held at the Corky McMillin Event Center in San Diego, California.Contact: Del Herbert at (619) 421-1034 or [email protected].

JANUARY

14-1528th annual Toms River Art & Decoy Festival to be held at Central High Schoolin Bayville, New Jersey. Contact: Janet Sellitto at (732) 341-9622, ext. 2214 [email protected].

16The 2012 Winter Sporting Sale by Copley Fine Art Auctions to be held at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in New York, New York. Contact: Copley’sat (617) 536-0030 or visit www.copleyart.com.

285th annual Susquehanna Flats VintageHunting & Fishing Collectibles Show to beheld at the Level Fire Hall in Havre deGrace, Maryland. Contact: Pat Vincenti at (410) 734-6238 or Chuck Usilton at(410) 378-3528.

1244th annual Henry Decoy Show to be heldat the Henry-Senachwine High School inHenry, Illinois. Contact: Bruce Bauter at(309) 364-4104 or [email protected].

MARCH

341st annual Long Island Decoy & SportingCollectibles Show to be held at the Electri-cians Union Hall in Smithtown, New York.Contact: Tim Sieger at (631) 537-0153 [email protected].

1043rd annual Wisconsin Decoy and Sport-ing Collectibles Show to be held at theHilton Garden Inn in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.Room to room trading on Thursday andFriday. Contact: Roger Ludwig at (920) 233-0349 or [email protected].

Zeb B. Barfield, Inc. Auction Facility12100 Mears Station RDHallwood, VA 23359757-824-4698 • [email protected]

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16-1835th annual Ohio Decoy Show sponsoredby the Ohio Decoy Collectors and CarversAssociation to be held at the Holiday Innin Westlake, Ohio. Contact: Mark Costilowat (440) 320-3039 or [email protected].

22-24Great Lakes Decoy Association annualshow to be held at the Holiday Inn in West-lake, Ohio. Contact: Ken Cole at (810) 845-2434 or [email protected].

3120th annual Decoy Show & Sale sponsoredby the New Jersey Decoy Collectors Associ-ation to be held at the Parkertown Fire Hallin Parkertown, New Jersey. Contact: RichPemberton at (609) 652-8752 or Pete Butlerat (609) 965-3143

APRIL

13-14East Coast Decoy Collectors Buy, Sell &Swap meet to be held at the St.MichaelsMotor Inn in St. Michaels, Maryland. Con-tact: John Clayton at (410) 745-2955,[email protected] or Jim Trimble at (703)768-7264, [email protected].

26-27Annual spring auction by Guyette &Schmidt to be held at the Pheasant Run Re-sort in St. Charles, Illinois. Contact:Guyette & Schmidt at (410) 745-0485 orvisit www.guyetteandschmidt.com

27-28National Antique Decoy Show sponsoredby the Midwest Decoy Collectors Associa-tion and held at the Pheasant Run Resortin St. Charles, Illinois. Room to room trading Monday through Thursday. Contact: Herb Desch at (312) 337-7957 orvisit www.midwestdecoy.org.

27-2942nd annual Ward World ChampionshipWildfowl Carving Competition and Art Fes-tival to be held at the Roland E. Powell Con-vention Center in Ocean City, Maryland.Contact: The Ward Museum at (410) 742-4988 or visit www.wardmuseum.org.

SEND US YOUR LISTINGSCalendar is a free service of Decoy Magazine.

Just mail us your information and we’ll take careof the rest. Remember, we’re published bi-monthly, so send us your information as soonas possible. We recommend you contact theshows to confirm these dates.

Deadline for the November/December 2011issue is January 13, 2012.

24 Decoy Magazine

Rare “Cockey family” swan decoysnow credited to their rightful maker,duck hunter and decoy carver Al Bell

Attribution, provenance andhistory are all important tothose of us who collect old de-coys. My primary focus overthe years has been on the his-

tory, as the other aspects will follow. During the summer of 1991, while serv-

ing on the Sporting Art Committee of theMaryland Historical Society, the questionarose as to the maker of the swan decoy intheir collection. The curator advised thecommittee that the swan was attributed toAl Bell of Baltimore. There was some sug-gestion, later disproved, that Bell was a vir-tually unknown African American carverfrom Baltimore City who made a few de-coys.

Magnificent swan decoy by Al Bell of Baltimore, Maryland, was sold inthe Guyette, Schmidt & Deeter auction on November 9, 2011 as a rareexample by John Cockey of Kent Island, Maryland, as they had been at-tributed by decoy collectors for roughly 25 years. Despite the confusionin attribution, most collectors would agree they are among the finestswan decoys to have floated the Chesapeake Bay.

COVER STORYCOVER STORY

The Historical Society was preparing anexhibit, “Maryland’s Finest Decoys,” andthe swan was illustrated on the cover ofthe exhibition catalog and again inside asPlate 56. Obviously the committee paidlittle attention to the Society’s curator, asthe caption for it read: “Swan, maker un-known, Havre de Grace, circa 1910.”

The next time a similar swan appearedwas at Richard Oliver and the Ward Mu-seum’s October 12-13, 1996 auction at theDelmarva Conference Center in Delmar,Maryland. Henry Fleckenstein Jr. and Iwrote the catalog descriptions for that auc-tion in a warehouse in nearby Salisbury,sitting side by side at a table with the de-

coys resting before us. Henry wrote the swan narrative, basing

most of his description on a swan that hadbeen offered at a Julia/Guyette auction inSeptember 1987 that featured the collec-tion of Jim Lewis. Both swans were attrib-uted to the Cockey family of Kent Islandin Queen Anne’s County, Maryland.Julia/Guyette attributed their swan to JimCockey while Henry credited the other toJohn Cockey, Jim’s father.

BY C. JOHN SULLIVAN JR.

photos by Leo Heppner and Jeff Pelayo


to secure the anchor line remains tightlyaffixed to its breast, similar to other exam-ples.

Just recently I purchased a Canadagoose decoy that I’ve sought for the last 15years. It’s without question carved by thesame maker as the swan. The head anglesdownward in an identical manner as theHistorical Society’s swan. This attitude isachieved by raising the back of the neckseat a quarter inch higher than the front.The goose displays the reinforcing metal

In April 2010 another of these swan de-coys, this one painted as a Canada goose,was displayed in Tom Reed’s room at theEast Coast Decoy Collectors meet in St.Michaels, Maryland. Henry Fleckensteintook a picture of Henry Stansbury hold-ing the decoy. Decoy dean Clark Reed,Tom’s father, took the decoy home thatday, and a day later it traveled back to Har-ford County with me. Decoy historian JoelBarber noted in his book, “Wild Fowl De-coys,” published in 1934, that many swanschanged species following the outlawingof hunting them in 1918. This is one ofthem. The form, dimensions, neck brac-ing and the large iron ring in the breast allmatch up with the other known examples.

And just recently, on November 9,2011, the auction house of Guyette,Schmidt & Deeter, offered another. Thedescription read: “Very rare and impor-tant swan decoy, John Cockey, Kent Is-land, Maryland, 1st quarter 20th century.”On the opposite page was a portion of JimTrimble’s Decoy Magazine article from theJanuary/February 2000 issue. Part of itread: “As evident by the variety of attribu-tion given, most knowledgeable collectorsagree that certain identification of theskillful hand that crafted these beautifulyet functional lures may forever remain amystery.”

The similarity in form between thethree swans offered at auction is evident.The Historical Society’s swan seems tohave a somewhat fuller body and a headthat appears to angle slightly downward.Yet if studied side by side, aligning theheads so that all bill tips are in the sameposition, the similar carving characteris-tics quickly become apparent. The blunttails rise slightly upward to a raised humpapproximately one-quarter of the body

length forward. The necks are attached toa raised shelf and metal reinforcementstraps that extend from the neck to thebody are inletted on each side.

The Historical Society swan also differsby the forward cut at the top of the neckand the addition of nearly one inch to theback of the head where it joins the neck.Nonetheless, the form of the head andneck are identical to the others. All knownexamples have an additional metal strapinletted into the back of the head and ex-tending down the neck, adding strengthto this two-piece attachment. The Histori-cal Society swan has a massive iron ballastweight fastened with screws. A large ring

Rare Canada goose by Al Bell with a downward angle to the head in anidentical manner as the swan decoy in the collection of the MarylandHistorical Society. Just like the swans, the goose displays the reinforcingmetal straps that support the neck.

straps in exactly the same position as theswan. The goose has two lead ballastweights, one round and the other triangu-lar, both fastened with hand forged nails.

From 1987 through 1996 little discus-sion took place among collectors regardingthe obvious contradiction of the Histori-cal Society’s attribution of their swan toBaltimore carver Al Bell with the attribu-tion of the Cockey family for the twoswans sold at auction. Maybe Jim Trimblewas right and the swans would “forever re-main a mystery.”

Then in the summer of 2009 I receiveda call from George B. Keen, who owned arig of decoys used at the famous Miller’sIsland Ducking Club, which was locatedon an island at the mouth of Back Riverin the Chesapeake Bay in BaltimoreCounty, Maryland. Taking advantage ofthis enviable opportunity, arrangementswere quickly made to visit his home. It was-n’t until I entered the house that I realizedthat the Keen family was the donor of theHistorical Society’s swan. There resting ontop of a china closet in the living room wasthe swan’s rig mate.

Keen graciously allowed me to take hisswan down from its high perch. I rested iton the floor and lifted one of the canvas-back decoys from the Miller’s Island rig.Holding the duck so that the head wouldbe at the same angle as the swan, there wasno question that both were carved by thesame hand. I’ve used that method of com-parison for years with decoys in my owncollection. Years ago when Decoy Maga-zine published my story on John B. Gra-ham, it illustrated a wonderful pair of hiscanvasbacks on the cover. When holdingone of my mini Graham canvasbacks at theproper distance from the cover, the simi-larity of profiles is instantly apparent.

Along with the history of those swans,and the original documentation of theirdonation, I left the Keen home that daywith the decoy rig they last used at Miller’sIsland. It included several blocky large-bod-ied canvasbacks with great heads and elon-gated bills with carved nostrils. There wasalso a box of carved duck decoy heads –black heads (bluebills) and redheads – withcarved nostrils that mimic the cuts of theswans, Canada goose and canvasbacks.

The history – by discussion with Keenand the documentation he provided –clearly leads to the conclusion that theswans, and his entire rig, were carved by AlBell of Baltimore. Mr. Keen related thathis family originally owned six of the mag-nificent swans. They were stored under thefront porch of the Keen home on Hamil-ton Avenue, which was literally around thecorner from the home of the Bell family.

So who was Al Bell? Unfortunately littleis known of him. Henry Mann, a friend

26 Decoy Magazine

Several large bodied canvasbacks in various repaint from the Keen family’s Millers Islandgunning rig. With their elongated bills and carved nostrils it was no doubt they were carvedby the same hand as the swans.

whose family shot at Miller’s Island, re-called that Bell lived in the Hamilton sec-tion of Baltimore and described him as anearly 20th century duck hunter and decoymaker. Mann wrote in 2006 that Bell“carved hundreds of decoys for differentgroups, such as the Keen’s, Mann’s,Todd’s and Lamberts. There were manyother groups that used his decoys. My fa-ther and his hunting group had as manyas 200-300 decoys carved by Mr. Bell, mostblackheads, canvasbacks, redheads plus afew swans.”

When he was a child, Mann visitedBell, who presented young Henry with sev-eral miniature decoys. When I visited himin 2011, Mann sent me to his china closetto view his miniature collection. They hadthe same form as the great swans. I pickedup one of the diminutive decoys and writ-ten on the underside was the name AlBell.

George W. Keen, the father of GeorgeB. Keen and the benefactor of the swan,described Al Bell in a 1964 letter to C.A.Porter Hopkins, then assistant to the Di-rector of the Maryland Historical Society.He described Bell as a close friend andhunting companion of his father anduncle. He also recalled that around 1915Bell presented them with five swan decoys,which he had made with wood from anold barn.

A few other facts about Bell can begleaned by old directories and censusrecords. Albert A. Bell was born in Penn-sylvania in approximately 1866 of Germanparents. By 1915 he was living on Catal-pha Avenue in the Hamilton section ofBaltimore, right aroundthe corner from theKeene family. Thatyear he was listed


Letter written by George W. Keen to C.A. Porter Hopkins identifyingthe maker of the swan decoy that he had donated earlier that year tothe Maryland Historical Society.

Al Bell swan from the Keen family collection,the rig mate to the one donated to the Maryland Historical Society

28 Decoy Magazine

him that four was an odd number and thathe should give up at least one or two tome. My plea has fallen on deaf ears. His re-sponse is always the same: “Just tell mewho made them.” And my answer was al-ways the same: “I have no idea.”

I stayed with Bob this past Novemberduring the Waterfowl Festival in Easton,Maryland. On the opening day of theshow I was able to purchase a full-sizedcanvasback undoubtedly carved by thesame hand as the swan decoys and Bob’sminiatures. Returning to his home thatevening I pulled out my new acquisitionand compared them to the miniatures. Allof the characteristics appear identical.

During the weekend my friend BillPugh displayed 30 of his Cockey family de-coys in the Artifacts Display in the highschool. Bill’s family was closely associatedwith the Cockeys, knowing them as decoycarvers and guides. Along with the decoys,his display featured Cockey family photo-graphs, decoy patterns and other accou-trements.

Bill brought with him the January/Feb-ruary 2000 issue of Decoy Magazine con-taining Jim Trimble’s article on theCockey family decoys. He had circled thetwo swan decoys pictured in that articleand had written one word in capital lettersnext to them – “NO.” He pointed to themagazine, then to his Cockey decoys, andsaid quite emphatically, “Not Cockey.”

Before simply accepting this proposi-tion that the swans are not Cockey family

Catalpha Avenue, just two blocks fromBell’s home. It was a bittersweet discovery.It’s always a great joy to locate and docu-ment a little known carver, but this closeproximity, though separated by time,causes me to ponder.

My good friend Robert Hockaday Jr.has owned four great little miniatures forthe past 15 years. Over that time I’ve usedmy most persuasive arguments to convince

in the City Directory as a commercial trav-eler. By 1922 his listed occupation was sig-nalman, consistent with George W. Keen’srecollection that Bell’s career was with therailroad.

In addition to driving through theHamilton neighborhood for almost eightyears of my daily commute, I was a fre-quent visitor throughout my lifetime tothe home of my mother’s first cousin on

Assortment of redhead and bluebill heads by Al Bell.

Group of miniature decoys by Al Bell, who carved them in the 1920s as gifts. ROBERT N. HOCKADAY JR. COLLECTION

decoys, try my method of silhouetting aknown Cockey decoy against this swan.Do they share a similar profile or any iden-tifying stylistic characteristics? Draw yourown conclusion.

Just recently I opened up Henry Fleck-enstein Jr.’s book “Decoys of the Mid-At-lantic Region,” which he published in1979. Among the many documentedcarvers in the book I read this notation:“(A)nother maker from Baltimore, Mary-land was A. Bell who made duck andgoose decoys and a few swan. Little isknown of this maker at the time of thewriting, but maybe someone will come for-ward with information and a few of his de-coys when they read this book.”

It took a few years, but at least for Mr.Bell and Mr. Fleckenstein, I have accom-plished that.

I note with interest that when Joel Bar-ber discovered the great Sam Barnes swandecoy under the grape arbor in the yard ofa house on Washington Street in Havre deGrace, it was in the yard of Bennett Keen.The Al Bell swan donated to the MarylandHistorical Society in 1964 had been storedunder the front porch of George Wash-ington Keen of Baltimore. Bennett andGeorge Keen were not only first cousins,but the source of two fabulous pieces ofAmerican folk art.

C. John Sullivan Jr., a long time col-lector of Upper Chesapeake Bay decoysand a contributing writer for DecoyMagazine, is the Director of Operationsat the Havre de Grace Decoy Museum.


Author John Sullivan with the swan decoy repainted as a Canada goose that he purchasedat the St. Michael’s show in 2010.

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The Tuckerton Seaport Museum, inconjunction with the New Jersey DecoyCollectors Association, has just unveileda new and extensive exhibit of the water-fowl carvings of Bob Seabrook. Of theover 100 pieces in the exhibit – from full-sized decoys to tiny miniatures – all but afew are shamelessly “counterfeit” exam-ples, replicas of the work of long gonemakers, such as Harry V. Shourds andRowley Horner of New Jersey, Ira Hudsonof Virginia and Sam Barnes and the Hollyfamily of Havre de Grace, Maryland.

Seabrook’s talent is largely self-taught,with inherited ability from two great-grandfathers who were wood carvers of or-nate architectural designs in mid-19thcentury Philadelphia. He carves the old-fashioned way, relying only on hand toolsand a photographic memory. But it’s his

M U S E U M N E W SM U S E U M N E W S

Seabrook’s “counterfeits” unveiled to the public

BBoobb SSeeaabbrrooookk ccaarrvviinngg aa ddeeccooyy hheeaadd iinn hhiisswwoorrkksshhoopp..

combination of those sculptural skills withcarefully applied paint patterns and an ex-pertly created patina that places his workamong the top tier of today’s decoy re-storers and replicators.

A self-described “collector’s collector,”he’s well-known for his exceptional arti-facts exhibit that he displays each Marchat the New Jersey Decoy Collectors showin Parkertown. He’s also a fan of trains,coins, oyster cans and all manner of related ephemera. This humble and unas-suming native of Absecon has been described as a “Bohemian Bayman” witha day job as a biologist for the New JerseyDepartment of Environmental Protection.

The exhibit, which will be on displaythrough March 2012, is located in theHunting Shanty at the Tuckerton Seaport.For info visit www.tuckertonseaport.org.

30 Decoy Magazine

J Reason Ad to go herefrom Drew

Seabrook’s “counterfeits” unveiled to the public

MMiiccaahh BBrroossnnaann ((RR)) oo ff ffeerr ss hhii ss aapppprraaii ssaa ll tt oo AAuucctt iioonn HHuunn tt eerr ss '' TToonn JJ oonneess ((LL)) aanndd AAll ll eenn HHaaff ff ..

C O L L E C T O R S C O R N E RC O L L E C T O R S C O R N E R

Auction Hunters bag “rig” of antique decoysBY MICAH BROSNAN

If you’re like me, when presented with anopportunity way outside of your comfortzone, the first instinct is to find an excuse topass it by. However, before your brain has anopportunity to advise your mouth, your gutscreams, “I’ll do it.” This recently happenedwhen a producer for the popular Spike TVreality show, Auction Hunters, phoned to askme to be an on-camera expert appraiser for arecently discovered group of antique decoys.

Every episode of Auction Hunters beginswith the same introduction: “Each year AllenHaff and Ton Jones dig through hundreds ofunclaimed storage units hunting for dis-carded treasure. These are the stories of theirmost rare and valuable discoveries.” As withmany “treasure hunting type” reality shows,Auction Hunters, now in its third season and averaging about 1.5 million viewers perepisode, is experiencing a great deal of success.

As a decoy collector and dealer in Califor-nia for over 15 years, I’ll be the first to admitthat the Golden State - and the West Coast ingeneral - isn’t exactly the hub of the decoy col-lecting community. With that said, howcould I pass up a chance to reach 1.5 millionpotential clients? “I’ll do it.”

The phone call came during the middle ofthe summer, and about four weeks later Ifound myself in Southern California, just out-side of Anaheim, standing in the middle of aduck club with four cameras, the two showhosts and about 20 members of a productionstaff. That we were about 30 minutes fromDisneyland seemed appropriate.

Filming began about 9 a.m. and roughlynine hours later I was heading back to the air-port. If you think you’d be nervous being oncamera, just give it a couple of hours and youdon’t even think about it. Seven hours lateryou’ll be more than ready to go home. Ninehours of filming resulted in about ten min-utes on the screen. They used just the partsthat made for interesting TV. Needless to saythe rest will remain on the cutting room floor.But all in all, the entire staff, particularly thehosts and producers, was both supportive and helpful.

Back to the show…while standing in themarsh I was asked to provide information onthe group of decoys found in the storage unit:three pairs of Mason Standard grade decoys(pintails, mallards and bluebills), a pair ofDick Janson pintails, an early Dick Janson

pintail, a Dodge redhead and the oddball ofthe group, a Gus Moak canvasback. As usual,the “expert appraiser,” after providing the in-formation on the items, is given the opportu-nity to purchase them, and I jumped on it.Some have already found new homes, somesitting on the shelves of readers of this maga-zine. And a few stayed home with me.

So now, having been given a glimpse of thelimelight, I’d be a willing participant if any-one needs a host for a new show. Just tell mewhere to send my resume. However, asmonths have passed since the episode origi-nally aired – and Hollywood hasn’t called – Ibetter just stick to selling decoys.

MMiiccaahh BBrroossnnaann iiss aa ddeeccooyy eenntthhuuss iiaass tt ffrroomm RRoosseevv ii ll llee ,, CCaallii ffoo rrnn iiaa .. II ff yyoouu ’’dd ll ii kkee tt oo vv iieewwtthhee ff uu ll ll eepp ii ssoodd ee ,, tthhee rree ’’ ss aa ll ii nnkk oonn hh ii ss wweebbss ii tt ee aatt wwwwww..wweess tt ccooaasstt -- dd eeccoo yyss .. ccoomm..

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A mixture of visually stunning images and extensive research

BY GENE & LINDA KANGAS

REVIEWED BY DIANNA A. JOHNSON

“Great Lake Decoy Interpretations,”the authors’ fourth book on duck andfish decoys, is a remarkable mixture thatprovides extensive historical backgroundand biographies along with visually stun-ning images of decoys, many presentedin unique and novel ways.

It begins with the cover – or rather thecovers, as there are five to choose from;all display a view of the decoy throughthe eye of the artists, both the carver andthe photographer. Thus an extremeclose-up of a decoy’s eye on the insidecover, an eye-to-eye level, seems entirelyappropriate. This powerful image,heightened through the technique ofclose inspection of detail, is followedthroughout the book with striking pho-tos of nearly 1000 fish and fowl decoys,expertly captured by the photographer,Gene Kangas.

Carvings representing eight major re-gions surrounding the Great Lakes, en-compassing both sides of the border, areoften shown in groups, sometimes asmany as ten or more in a single “flock,”not in straight-line/best-side-forwardview but at mixed angles intermingledwith close-ups that help reiterate theform, attitude, texture, paint or posecharacteristics of the carver.

The photographs are powerfulenough to convey a message withoutwords – even without captions, whichwere omitted so as not to detract fromtheir impact.

To look at the images, it’s as thougheach maker is presenting an argument forhis own unique interpretation of thesalient features of the species. For exam-ple, images of three geese – just the necksand heads – gracefully captured by JohnTax contrasts with the composite ofwacky, stretched-out-every-which-waynecks of Harry Ackerman’s gaggle of sixgeese. The high-necked elegance of theKankakee carver’s pintails (Herman Tri-nosky?) is shown through repetition ofeight slightly overlapping images. The

powerful sculpture of tucked-head ducksby Mandt or Ferd Homme is particularlyapparent in back, side and angled viewsof nine different examples.

Gus Moak’s portrayal of aggressiveposture in his canvasbacks with protrud-ing heads, accentuated in four differentperspectives, differs fundamentally fromthe calm stoic effect of ChaunceyWheeler’s brant, their pleasing shape re-flected in a series of five almost identicalexamples. The importance of paint onMason factory decoys is highlighted in anextreme close-up of black and white swirlpaint shown against a fuchsia back-

ground. Frank Buchner’s decoys are allabout fanciful folk art carving on aduck’s back, illustrated in a high magni-fication picture with no visual clue of theduck itself.

The birds are vivid in color and detailwhile the backgrounds remain muted,some with a ghostly image of the carverpeering out from behind his decoys. Thiswas the result of a two print process, re-quiring the designer to painstakingly cre-ate individual masks around each of thedecoys, allowing a second high gloss coat-ing of just the birds, resulting in a new standard for producing decoy im-ages as art.

This photographic achievement is sup-

32 Decoy Magazine

ported with equally painstaking researchof the background and history of decoymaking in the region, provided in a styleof writing that emphasizes the art ofdecoy carving through comparisons toImpressionistic paintings by Monet andsimplicity-driven sculpture by Brancusi,as well as discussions of artistic merit(good, better and best).

To help the reader understand theconditions under which decoys were pro-duced at the turn of the last century, theauthors include an entertaining review,through both text and photographs, ofthe wealth, power and prestige of earlysport hunters who had the leisure timeand money to pursue their waterfowlinginterests. In their determination to ob-tain the best tools for their pastime, theycreated demand while elevating theknowledge base of both the decoys andthose who made them.

In addition, each Great Lakes regionis introduced through an accounting ofthe details of time and place as well aslocal factors that influenced the decoytrade. This is followed with highly de-tailed reviews of each of the majorcarvers and their personal lives, includ-ing insights into why these men chose toexecute their carvings with such uniqueand distinctive styles.

Although wildfowl decoys are thedominant subject of this book, the au-thors also included separate chapters onfish decoys, patents and folk art of the re-gion, with equally stunning though moretraditionally arranged images and exten-sive historical background.

While you’ll be dazzled by the imagesof the decoys, this is more than just apretty picture book. It is also an impor-tant reference source with an impressivecompilation of historical fact replete withartistic interpretation. It represents amajor achievement by this author/pho-tographer team who continues to shapeour impressions and appreciation of de-coys as art.

““GGrreeaa tt LLaakkee DDeecc ooyy IInntt eerr pprreettaa tt iioonn ss ,,””bb yy GGeennee aanndd LL ii nnddaa KKaannggaass ,, 333366ppaaggee ss ,, CCoonnccoo rrdd ,, OOHH,, $$5500..

BO O K R E V I E W SBO O K R E V I E W S


BO O K R E V I E W SBO O K R E V I E W S

sey decoys and shorebirds, arranged inorder from north along the coast southto Cape May. Readers could suspect abias, as the ducks, geese and brant weregiven much more space – and much big-ger photos - than that allotted for theshorebirds. This was also true in theShourds chapter, as one page featuringblack-bellied plovers included a dozen ex-amples. As these are some of the finestexamples known, we would have addedsome pages (easy for us to say) and en-larged their stature on the pages.

Noting that collectors have difficulty

differentiating between a Harry V. and aHarry M. decoy, the author included a“Comparative Study,” showing examplesby each maker side by side. While it’shelpful, we think it could have been ex-panded upon.

Likely the most important chapter toexpanding the knowledge base – and

REVIEWED BY DECOY MAGAZINE

As one of the premier collectors ofNew Jersey decoys – from both the coastand the Delaware River – Jim Doherty’snew book was long anticipated by avidcollectors. From the beginning of thisproject his intent was to include coastaldecoys only, leaving the riverbirds for another day.

In his introduction he nar-rows his focus even further,stating that Harry V.Shourds, Nathan RowleyHorner, Lloyd Parker andHarry M. Shourds were “NewJersey’s four best decoy mak-ers,” and devotes over halfthe number of pages in thebook in highlighting theirwork.

The author also deferredon the history of the makersand state’s waterfowling tra-ditions, instead referringreaders to earlier books thathave handled that perspec-tive. What he accomplishedwas producing a very thor-ough picture book of some ofNew Jersey finest coastal de-coys – and a bit more, as we’llget to later.

According to the author,the book includes an originalpaint example of everyspecies made by each of thesefour makers, with the excep-tion of Parker whose decoysexist in more limited num-bers. In most cases a page isdedicated to each decoy, withprofiles of both sides andoften a top view or close-upof the head. Included in Harry V.’s chap-ter is a rare standing herring gull decora-tive that had remained in the Shourdsfamily, only the third documented gullby his hand.

Two separate chapters in the book aredevoted to a pictorial survey of New Jer-

eliminating some misleading attributions- is entitled “Myths and Mysteries,”which attempts to separate the decoys ofHorner and Chris Sprague, whose carv-ings often emulated those of his formermentor. Many collectors are aware ofthese misattributions, yet since thosemistakes were repeated so often in booksand magazines it’s good to have the au-thor’s opinions in print. To further buildhis case for identifying the differences be-tween these two makers, he includes atranscript of a taped 1964 interview ofSprague by Charles J. Westen that bol-

sters his conclusions. There is a little history

tucked in a couple sectionsin the back, including somebackground on the Irwinfamily, who owned a rig ofShourds decoys that in-cluded at least five swim-ming black ducks, andshort pieces on a half dozenmakers using research pro-vided by John Clayton, afellow New Jersey collector.We don’t know why thesecouldn’t have been ex-panded to cover everymaker included in thebook. Obviously that was-n’t the author’s intent.

Within these limita-tions, this is without doubtthe finest compilation oftop quality New Jersey gun-ning decoys – all picturedin full color – assembled inone book. For this reasonalone, we’d highly recom-mend it to anyone inter-ested in New Jersey decoysand as a valued referencefor the shelf. As the author’s passion also en-compasses decoys from theneighboring DelawareRiver, it’ll be curious to

see whether he follows up on that regionas well.

““CCllaa ss ss ii cc NNeeww JJ ee rr ss ee yyss DDeeccoo yyss ”” bb yyJJaammeess RR.. DDoohhee rr tt yy,, ppuubbll ii sshheedd bb yy FFoouurrCCoo lloo rr PPrr ii nntt GGrroouupp,, LLoouu ii ssvv ii ll ll ee ,, KKeenn--ttuucckkyy,, 221166 ppaaggeess ,, $$5555..

Coastal New Jersey book focuses on the classics

BY JAMES R. DOHERTY

34 Decoy Magazine

MEMORIAMMEMORIAMIN

Joe AnderlikPPooppuullaarr ccaarrvveerr aanndd ppeerrssoonnaalliittyy

As this year’s migration of featheredfriends pass over Lac du Flambeau, Wis-consin and Arlington Heights, Illinois,they won’t realize that one of their greatestfans, Joe Anderlik, will not be there togreet them, as he passed away on August 1,2011. Best known at decoy shows for hisred pajamas, bare feet and a familiar glassof scotch in his hand, this talented carverwould “hold court” late into the night,spinning stories to the delight of all whowere present.

Joe’s early life included hunting, fish-ing, trapping and falconry. During the De-pression he hunted crows along theIllinois River, often collecting the princelysum of $8.00 bounty for his day’s effort,money that his family desperately neededat a time when a job was hard to come by.

When World War II broke out, Joe an-swered his country’s call by enlisting inthe Navy. He ultimately was assigned as agunner aboard a Douglas SDB Dauntlessdive bomber. His squadron was assignedto the USS Franklin CV-13, known to hercrew as Big Ben. The Franklin was in-volved in some of the biggest naval battlesin the Pacific Theater, including the Battleof Leyte Gulf, which helped turn the tideof the war. Along with making bombingruns, Joe provided cover fire, shootingdown two enemy aircraft. For his heroicefforts, he was awarded two air medals.

Joe flew 125 combat missions while as-signed to the Franklin and his squadronprovided assistance in the invasion of IwoJima. On one occasion his dive bomberwas forced to ditch into the ocean, wherehe was picked up by a friendly sub and re-turned to action. On March 19, 1945 theFranklin was hit by two 550 poundbombs, one penetrating the main deckand causing fires below and the othercausing an explosion that ignited the am-munition and rocket storage magazines.Joe and his shipmates valiantly fought tosave the Franklin, and although the crip-pled carrier took on a 13 degree list, thefires were brought under control and BigBen limped back to port. The casualtiesincluded 724 killed in action and 265wounded.

With the end of the war just weeksaway, Joe never returned to action. Uponreturning home, he earned a Master’s De-gree in Business Administration at North-western University and got married. He

and his wife Margie raised six daughtersand a son. He worked for ConsolidatedPaper Company for most of his profes-sional career.

Although he had no formal training incarving or painting, Joe began making de-coys in the early 1960s and quickly becamerenowned for his skills in both areas. Overthe many years of his carving career hemade many loons, one of his favoritespecies, and they were sculpted in a vari-ety of animated poses and colorfully dec-orated. As to his talents, Joe always said,“God guides my hand.”

Joe was a man who enjoyed life andspent it spreading good cheer to all hemet. He particularly enjoyed helpingyoung aspiring carvers learn the art ofdecoy carving. He loved children, oftengiving his creations as gifts to the “littleones” drawn to him by his ready smile andwarm personality. The pouch he worearound his waist had numerous pockets,each holding a glass, which he readilypassed to friends and filled with a little li-bation.

It is an honor and privilege to haveknown him. He was a wonderful friendwho will be greatly missed. Whenever wedeparted after a decoy show, he alwaystold us to “remember the yellow brickroad.” We thank him for his service to ourcountry and to the joy he spread around.May you forever, “Little Buddy,” rest inpeace.

- John Wagner, John Freimuth andCurt Froyen


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A U C T I O N N E W SA U C T I O N N E W S

By Decoy Magazine Photos courtesy Frank & Frank

ARARE WOOD DUCK by theWard brothers of Crisfield,Maryland sold for $86,250,nearly double the low esti-mate, at Frank & Frank’s fall

“Decoys, Art and Sporting Collectibles”auction on Friday, September 23 at theParkertown Fire House in Parkertown,New Jersey, just a day before the big two-day Tuckerton decoy show. By far the toplot in the auction, it was purchased by atenacious bidder in the audience who didbattle with a determined bidder on thephone.

The majority of the top lots at mostFrank & Frank auctions are comprised ofdecoys and decoratives from New Jersey

Rare Ward brothers wood duck tops the chartsat Frank & Frank Sporting Collectibles auction

collection of Dr. James McCleery, was thetop coastal bird in the sale, selling to thephone at its low estimate $18,400. A hol-low black duck by Harry M. Shourds ofOcean City also went to the phone, sell-

RRaarree wwoooodd dduucckk bbyy tthhee WWaarrdd bbrrootthheerr ss ooff CCrriiss ff ii eelldd,, MMaarr yy llaanndd ((eess tt.. $$4466,,000000//6699,,000000)) ssoolldd tt oo aa bbii ddddeerr iinn tthhee aauuddiieennccee ffoorr $$8866,,225500,, bbyy ffaarr tthhee tt oopp ll oott ii nn tthhee aauuccttiioonn..

WWiilllleett bbyy tthhee MMaassoonn ddeeccooyy ffaaccttoorr yy ooff DDeettrrooiitt ((eesstt.. $$11338800//11772255)) bbrroouugghhtt $$22003311..

36 Decoy Magazine

RRaarree HHuuddssoonniiaann ccuurrlleeww bbyy TTaayylloorr JJoohhnnssoonn ooff PPtt.. PPlleeaassaanntt,, NNeeww JJeerrsseeyy ((eesstt.. $$1188,,440000//2200,,770000)) ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$1188,,440000..

and the Delaware River as well as contem-poraries from outside the region, and theyaccounted for 21 of the top 27 lots in this sale.

An extremely rare curlew by TaylorJohnson of Point Pleasant, formerly in the

HHoollllooww--ccaarrvveedd bbllaacckk dduucckk bbyy HHaarrrryy MM.. SShhoouurrddss ooff OOcceeaann CCiittyy,, NNeeww JJeerr sseeyy ((eesstt.. $$22887755//44002255))ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$22999900..

LLeesssseerr yyeelllloowwlleeggss bbyy LLllooyydd JJoohhnnssoonn ooff BBaayyhheeaadd,, NNeeww JJeerrsseeyy ((eesstt.. $$44660000//55775500)) ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$33445500..

BBlluuee--wwiinnggeedd tteeaall bbyy LLllooyydd JJoohhnnssoonn ((eesstt.. $$22887755//44002255)) ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$22330000..


PPaaiirr ooff hhoollllooww--ccaarrvveedd wwoooodd dduucckkss bbyy tthhee WWiillddffoowwlleerr DDeeccooyy CCoommppaannyy ooff PPtt.. PPlleeaassaanntt,,NNeeww JJeerrsseeyy ((eesstt.. $$11772255//22330000)) bbrroouugghhtt $$11443388..

SSwwaann bbyy MMaaddiissoonn MMiittcchheell ll ooff HHaavvrree ddee GGrraaccee,,MMaarr yy llaanndd ((eesstt.. $$446600//669900)) ssoo lldd tt oo aa pphhoonnee bbii ddddeerr ffoo rr $$11226655..

HHoollllooww--ccaarrvveedd bbllaacckk dduucckk bbyy BBoobb WWhhiittee ooff TTuullllyyttoowwnn,, PPeennnnssyyllvvaanniiaa ((eesstt.. $$11772255//22887755)) ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$22887755..

ing within estimate for $2990. There weretwo lots by early Jersey collector and carverLloyd Johnson of Bay Head: a yellowlegsat $3450 and a hollow blue-winged teal at$2300, both short of estimate. There werealso two lots by Hurley Conklin of Man-hawkin: hollow mallard pair at $1265 andgroup of seven peeps at $805, both overestimate. A pair of hollow wood ducks bythe Wildfowler factory in Point Pleasantfell just short at $1438.

A hollow mallard by Harry Fennimoreof Bordentown was the only vintageDelaware River decoy on the list,making estimate at $805.There were five lots by BobWhite of Tullytown, Penn-sylvania, topped by an earlyhollow black duck that sold to aphone bidder at its high estimate $2875.Pairs of ruddy ducks, goldeneyes and cin-

PPaa iirr ooff hhoollll ooww--ccaarrvveedd ppiinnttaaii llss bbyy JJooddee HHiill llmmaann ooff MMuullll iiccaa HHiill ll,, NNeeww JJeerr sseeyy ((eesstt.. $$992200//11338800))bbrroouugghhtt $$880055..

By Decoy Magazine Photos courtesy Eldred’s

Top 25 lots at the Frank & Frank AuctionTuckerton, New Jersey, September 23, 2011

Rank Description (catalog no.) Av. Est. Price

Ward Bros. (MD) wood duck (348) $57,500 $86,250Taylor Johnson (NJ) curlew (331) 19,550 18,400Lloyd Johnson (NJ) lesser yellowlegs, dec. (309) 5,175 3.450Harry M. Shourds (NJ) HC black duck (327) 3,450 2,990Bob White (PA) HC black duck (219) 2,300 2,875Lloyd Johnson (NJ) BW teal, dec. (308) 3,450 2,300Lee Dudley (NC) canvasback, reheaded (337) 2,875 2,300Mason factory (MI) willet (31) 1,553 2,013Bob White (PA) HC ruddy duck pair (216) 1,898 1,955Frank Finney (VA) brown trout plaque (170) 2,300 1,725Wildfowler (NJ) HC wood duck pair (10) 2,013 1,438Bob White (PA) HC goldeneye pair (215) 1,553 1,380Bob White (PA) HC cinnamon teal pair (217) 2,300 1,380Madison Mitchell (MD) swan (286) 575 1,265Hurley Conklin (NJ) HC mallard pair (154) 575 1,265Frank Finney (VA) sleeping pintail (169) 1,150 1,035Ray Schalk (FL) 10 mini Mason replicas (43) 1,553 1,035Bill Joeckel (NY) wood duck (178) 1,380 978Ray Schalk (FL) 9 mini Mason replicas (41) 1,553 932Bob White (PA) mini swan (218) 1,150 920Lloyd Tyler (MD) ½-sized standing pintail (346) 748 920Ray Schalk (FL) 8 mini Mason replicas (44) 1,553 8285 lots tied for 23rd place 845 8055 lots tied for 23rd place 845 8055 lots tied for 23rd place 845 805

TOTALS $118,689 $140,049

#Jode Hillman (NJ) HC pintail pair (90) 1,150#Harry Fennimore (NJ) HC mallard (209) 863#Lloyd Tyler (MD) ½-sized standing pintail (347) 748#Hurley Conklin (NJ) group of 7 peeps (147) 460#Bob Moreland (VA) Canada goose (87) 1,006

Key: HC- hollow-carved BW – blue-winged

The top 25 lots (6.5% of the 386 sold) accounted for $140,049 (68% of the$205,821 gross) and was 18% over their average estimate.

1.2.3.4.5.6.6.8.9.10.11.12.12.14.14.16.16.18.19.20.20.22.#23.#23.#23.

namon teal made $1725, $1380 and $1380,with the last missing estimate. A neat lookingminiature high head swan made its low esti-mate $920. A pair of hollow pintails by JodeHillman of Mullica Hill just missed estimateat $805.

From outside the region, a canvasbackwith a restored head by Lee Dudley of KnottsIsland, North Carolina sold to an absenteebid of $2300. A tack eye model willet by theMason decoy factory of Detroit topped esti-mate at $2013. A swan by Madison Mitchellof Havre de Grace, Maryland sold to thephone over estimate for $1265. There weretwo ½-sized standing pintails by Lloyd Tylerof Crisfield, Maryland; the first had a longersprig tail and made its high estimate at $920and the other just missed at $805.

There were two carvings by folk artistFrank Finney of Cape Charles, Virginia onthe list: a brown trout fish plague that sold toan absentee bidder at its low estimate $1725and a sleeping pintail that sold to the phonewithin estimate at $1035. Ray Schalk of Cler-mont, Florida is well-known for his miniaturereplicas of Mason factory decoys, and of fourgroups offered here three made the top 25 listat $1035 (group of 10), $932 (group of 9) and$828 (group of 8), all falling short of estimate.A decorative wood duck by Bill Joeckel ofIslip, Long Island, New York brought $978and a Canada goose by Bob Moreland of Har-risonburg, Virginia made $805, each missingestimate.

Frank & Frank’s auctions are largely un-affected by buy-ins, and that was the case atthis auction as well, as just 13 lots with a lowestimate of $14,605 failed to sell. This wasalso their highest grossing auction in fouryears, thanks largely to the Ward wood duck,which alone accounted for nearly 42% of thetotals.

In summary, of 399 lots offered 13 failedto sell, leaving 386 lots that sold for $205,821for an average of $533 per lot and were 14.7%over low estimate after deducting the low es-timate of the unsold lots. The top 25 lots(6.5% of the total sold) accounted for$140,049 (68% of the gross) and were 18%over their total average estimate. All prices in-clude a 15% buyer’s premium. Bill Barronwas the auctioneer.

38 Decoy Magazine

BBrroowwnn tt rroouutt ff iisshh ppllaagguuee bbyy FFrraannkk FFiinnnneeyy ooff VViirrgg iinniiaa ((eesstt .. $$11772255//22887755)) ssoolldd tt oo aann aabbsseenntt eeeebbiidd oo ff $$11661100..

WWoooodd dduucckk bb yy BBii ll ll JJ ooeecckkee ll oo ff II ss ll ii pp ,, NNeeww YYoorrkk((eess tt .. $$11115500//11661100)) ssoo lldd tt oo aann aabbss eenntt eeee bb ii dd oo ff $$997788..

40 Decoy Magazine

A U C T I O N N E W SA U C T I O N N E W S

By Decoy Magazine photos courtesy of Guyette, Schmidt & Deeter

AMAGNIFICENT FULL-SIZEDstanding redhead, possibly theonly known example by A.E.Crowell of East Harwich, Mas-sachusetts, sold for $241,500

to a battle of phone bidders at Guyette,Schmidt & Deeter’s annual fall auction,held on November 9-10, 2011 at the Tal-bot County Community Center in Eas-ton, Maryland. Selling well over estimate,it was by far the top lot in an auction oth-erwise dominated by decoys from theMid-Atlantic States.

A rare swan by John Williams of CedarIsland, Virginia, with the same pre-sale es-timate as the redhead, sold below estimateto a phone bidder for $131,500, yet it stillset an auction price record for its maker.A ruddy duck hen by Ned Burgess ofChurches Island, North Carolina soldafter the auction below estimate at$14,375.

Moving north to the Eastern Shore ofVirginia, there were three lots by Ira Hud-son of Chincoteague that made the top25 list, topped by an oversized hollow-carved special order black duck with aslightly turned head and fluted tail thatsold to a phone bidder just short of esti-mate at $54,625. Two three piece hollow-

Crowell redhead stands above its peersin sale dominated by mid-Atlantic decoys

FFuullll -- ssiizzeedd ssttaannddiinngg rreeddhheeaadd bbyy AA..EE.. CCrroowweellll ooff EEaasstt HHaarrwwiicchh,,MMaassssaacchhuusseettttss ((eesstt.. $$115599,,000000//118811,,000000)) ssoolldd ttoo aa bbaattttllee ooff pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerrss ffoorr $$224411,,550000,, tthhee ttoopp lloott iinn tthhee aauuccttiioonn..

carved decoys, a brant and a black duck,made $15,525 and 14,950, each short ofestimate. A balsa yellowlegs sold to thephone for $11,500.

A decorative Canada goose by hisMaryland neighbors, the Ward brothers ofCrisfield made the top 25,selling to a phone bidderat its low estimate$23,000. Other dec-

oratives of note include a preening wigeonat $14,375, a preening pintail at $13,800and a pair of canvasbacks at $12,650. Twolots of their early gunning decoys, a pairof “knot head” canvasbacks and a turnedhead bluebill, brought $11,500 and$10,638. A rare wigeon by their Crisfieldneighbor, Lloyd Sterling, sold to a Ten-nessee collector below estimate at$13,800.

Moving up the Bay, a swan by JohnCockey of Kent Island, Maryland sold for

LLaattee 1199tthh cceennttuurr yy bblluueebbiillll bbyy CCaappttaaiinn BBeenn DDyyee ooffPPeerrrryyvvii llllee,, MMaarryyllaanndd ((eesstt.. $$66990000//99220000)) ssoolldd ttoo aapphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$1166,,110000,, aann aauuccttiioonn pprr iiccee rreeccoorrddffoorr iittss mmaakkeerr..

RRaarree hhoollllooww--ccaarrvveedd aanndd wweellll --ppaaiinntteedd bbllaacckk dduucckkbbyy IIrraa HHuuddssoonn ooff CChhiinnccootteeaagguuee,, VViirrggiinniiaa ((eesstt.. $$5577,,550000//6699,,000000)) ssoolldd ttoo aa pphhoonnee bbiiddddeerr ffoorr $$5544,,662255..

RRaarree sswwaann bbyy JJoohhnn WWii ll ll ii aammss ooff CCeeddaarr II ss llaanndd,,VVii rrgg iinniiaa ((eess tt .. $$115599 ,,000000//118811,,000000)) ssoo lldd tt oo aapphhoonnee bb iiddddeerr ffoo rr $$113311,,550000 ,, aann aauucctt ii oonn pprr iicceerreeccoorrdd ffoo rr ii tt ss mmaakkeerr..

RRaarree sswwaann bbyy JJ oohhnn CCoocckkeeyy oo ff KKeenntt II ss llaanndd,,MMaarr yy llaanndd ((eess tt .. $$1177 ,,225500//2233,,000000 )) bbrroouugghhtt $$2200,,112255 ..

DDeeccoorraa tt ii vvee CCaannaaddaa ggoooossee bb yy tthhee WWaarrdd bbrroo tthheerr ssoo ff CCrrii ss ff ii ee lldd ,, MMaarr yy llaanndd ((ee sstt .. $$2233,,000000//2277,,660000))ssoo lldd tt oo aa pphhoonnee bb ii ddddeerr ffoo rr $$2233 ,,000000 ..

EExxcceeppttiioonnaall rreedd kknnoott ((eesstt.. $$2200,,770000//2255,,330000)) aannddbbllaacckk--bbeelllliieedd pplloovveerr iinn ttrraannssiittiioonnaall pplluummaaggee ((eesstt..$$2233,,000000//2288,,775500)) ssoolldd sseeppaarraatteellyy ttoo aa MMaarryy llaannddccoolllleeccttoorr ffoorr $$2200,,770000 aanndd $$2211,,227755..

$20,125, exactly as estimated. (See ourcover story on page 24 for new research onthe origins of this swan.) A very rare blue-bill by Capt. Ben Dye of Havre de Grace,in nearly mint condition, sold for doublethe estimate to a phone bidder for$16,100. A full-sized standing swan withopen wings, reportedly first seen in Dorch-ester County at the entrance to a planta-tion, brought $15,525.

A rare hollow-carved goldeneye byAmos Wheaton of South Seaville, NewJersey was the top lot from the GardenState, selling to a phone bidder well overestimate at $41,400, an auction pricerecord for its maker. There were two hol-low-carved lots by Harry M. Shourds ofOcean City: a merganser hen over esti-mate at $26,450 and a pair of redheadsunder estimate at $19,550. There weretwo shorebirds by his father, Harry V.Shourds of Tuckerton, that made the list,and both sold to the same Maryland col-lector: black-bellied plover in transitionalplumage at $21,275 and a robin snipe at$20,700, the first at low estimate and theother just short. A pair of hollow-carvedred-breasted mergansers found in Pleas-antville and attributed by some to DanielLake Leeds brought $10,350. A hollow-carved mallard by Bill Quinn of Yardley,Pennsylvania was the top Delaware Riverdecoy, selling to a phone bidder for$10,350, double its low estimate.

The auction house must have been sur-prised when a pair of early Long Islanddowitchers – catalogued as golden plover– sold to a phone bidder for $23,000,eight times the low estimate. A rare long-billed curlew by Thomas Gelston ofQuogue, Long Island, found in a house inDorchester County, Maryland, sold below

RRaarree hhoo ll ll ooww --ccaa rr vveedd ggoo llddeennee yyee bbyy AAmmooss WWhheeaattoonn oo ff SSoouu tthh SSeeaavvii ll ll ee ,, NNeeww JJ eerr ssee yy ((ee ss tt.. $$1177,,225500//2233 ,,000000 )) ssoo lldd tt oo aa pphhoonnee bbii ddddeerr ffoo rr $$4411,,440000,, aann aauucc ttii oonn pprr iiccee rreecc oorrdd ffoo rr iitt ss mmaakkeerr..


HHooll ll ooww -- ccaarr vvee dd mmeerrggaannss eerr hheenn bbyy HHaarrrr yy MM.. SShhoouu rrddss ooff OOcceeaann CCiitt yy ,, NNeeww JJeerr ssee yy ((eess tt .. $$2200 ,,112255//2255,,887755 )) ssoo lldd tt oo aa pphhoonnee bbii ddddeerr ffoo rr $$2266 ,,445500..

By Decoy Magazine Photos courtesy Eldred’s

Top 25 lots at the Guyette, Schmidt & Deeter auctionEaston, Maryland, November 9-10, 2011

Rank Description (catalog no.) Av. Est. Price

A.E. Crowell (MA) standing redhead (128) $170,000 $241,500John Williams (VA) swan (479) 170,000 131,500Ira Hudson (VA) HC black duck (482) 63,250 54,625Amos Wheaton (NJ) HC goldeneye (49) 20,125 41,400Joe Lincoln (MA) set of 14 miniatures (420) 69,000 37,375Phineas Reeves (ONT) HC Canada goose (235) 34,500 32,775Mason factory (MI) Premier Canada goose (259) 25,300 27,600Harry M. Shourds (NJ) HC merganser hen (58) 23,000 26,450Robert Elliston (IL) HC BW teal hen (460) 29,900 23,000Ward Bros. (MD) Canada goose, dec. (391) 25,300 23,000Two Long Island shorebirds (84) 3,450 23,000Harry V. Shourds (NJ) BB plover (607B) 25,875 21,275Harry V. Shourds (NJ) robin snipe (607A) 23,000 20,700John Cockey (MD) swan (110) 20,125 20,125Harry M. Shourds (NJ) HC redhead pair (50) 25,875 20,125Thomas Gelston (NY) long-billed curlew (608) 28,750 19,550Mason factory (MI) Premier black duck (4) 8,625 17,250Frederick, Joefrau, Lafrance (LA) preening mallard hen (185)8,625 17,250Capt. Ben Dye (MD) bluebill (109) 8,050 16,100Oscar Peterson (MI) rock bass fish plaque (202) 20,700 15,525Swan with out-stretched wings (553) 34,500 15,525J.R. Wells (ONT) HC canvasback (234) 18,400 15,525Ira Hudson (VA) HC brant (481) 20,700 15,525Ira Hudson (VA) HC black duck (488) 21,125 14,950Mason factory (MI) Challenge GW teal hen (8) 2,875 14,663

TOTALS $ $901,050 $906,313

Key: HC – hollow-carved BB – black-bellied GW – green-wingedBW – blue-winged dec. – decorative * - auction price record

for this maker

The top 25 lots (3.9% of the 636 sold) accounted for $906,313 (44.4% of the$2,040,080 gross) and were .6% above their total average estimate.

1.*2.3.*4.5.6.7.8.9.9.9.12.13.14.14.16.17.17.*19.20.20.20.20.24.25.

estimate to a southern dealer for $19,550. A hollow-carved Canada goose by

Phineas Reeves of Long Point, Ontariowas the top Great Lakes area decoy in theauction, selling to a phone bidder withinestimate at $32,775. A hollow-carved can-vasback by J.R. Wells of Toronto fell justshort at $15,525.

A Premier Canada goose by the Masondecoy company of Detroit was the top fac-tory decoy in the auction, selling for itshigh estimate $27,600. A Premier blackduck also made the top 25 list, selling to aphone bidder at double its average esti-mate at $17,250. The surprise was likely aChallenge green-winged teal hen that soldfor $14,663, over five times its average es-timate. Two lots of note include a pair ofChallenge mergansers below estimate at$12,650 and a Premier blue-winged tealhen within estimate at $10,925.

An exceptional hollow-carved blue-winged teal hen by Robert Elliston of Bu-reau was the top Illinois River decoy in theauction, selling to a phone bidder short ofestimate at $23,000. A hollow-carvedgreen-winged teal by Charles Perdew ofHenry made estimate at 12,075.

An early group of 14 miniatures by JoeLincoln of Accord, Massachusetts, madein 1894 as a wedding gift for a friend andhunting companion, sold as a group for$36,800, well short of estimate. Also fromNew England, a canvas-covered Canadagoose by George Boyd of Seabrook, NewHampshire, missed estimate at $12,650.Two additional Crowell decoratives, a fly-ing miniature flying black duck and aCanada goose weathervane, brought$11,500 and $10,350.

There was a choice group of WestCoast decoys from the collection of BertPreston, topped by a hollow-carved can-vasback by Charles Bergman of Astoria,

42 Decoy Magazine

RRoocckk bbaassss ff ii sshh ppllaaqquuee bbyy OOssccaarr PPeett ee rr ssoonn oo ff CCaaddii ll llaacc ,, MMii cchhii ggaann((ee sstt .. $$1188 ,,440000//2233 ,,000000 )) bb rroouugghh tt $$1155,,552255..

VVeerr yy rraa rree ll oonngg -- bb ii ll ll eedd ccuu rr ll eeww bbyy TThhoommaass GGeell ss tt oonn oo ff QQuuoogguuee ,, LLoonngg II ss llaanndd,, NNeeww YYoorrkk (( eess tt.. $$2233,,000000//3344,,550000)) ssoo lldd tt oo aa SSoouu tthheerrnn ddeeaa ll eerr ffoo rr $$1199,,555500..


Oregon over estimate at $8625. Threeother Bergmans of note include a pair ofmallards at $9775, a green-winged teal henat $8050 and a rare bluebill at $5750. Apair of canvasbacks by Dick Janson ofNapa, California sold to a Midwest collec-tor at its high estimate $7475.

A rare rock bass fish model by OscarPeterson of Cadillac, Michigan was thebest of a small group of fish plagues,falling short of estimate at 15,525.

In many ways this was Guyette,Schmidt & Deeter’s best auction of the

Ver y ra re l ong - b i l l ed cu r l ew b y Thomas Gel s ton o f Quogue, Lon g I s land , New York ( e s t. $23,000/34,500) so ld t o a Sou thern dea ler fo r $19,550.

year, despite having 95 lots with a low es-timate of $459,310 that failed to sell.While it was the highest total of any oftheir three major sales of 2011, the major-ity of their high profile lots were sold.They had a diverse offering of quality de-coys from many different regions and 33of the lots sold for $10,000 or more, alsoa high for the year. And their gross saleswere the highest for their fall auction since2007, the year before the Great Recessionofficially began.

In summary, of 731 lots offered, 95

PPrreemmii eerr gg rraaddee CCaannaaddaa ggoooossee bbyy tthhee MMaassoonn ddeecc ooyyffaaccttoo rr yy ((ee sstt .. $$2233,,000000//2277,,660000)) bb rroouugghhtt $$2277 ,,660000 ..

failed to sell, leaving 636 lots that sold for$2,040,080 for an average of $3208 per lotand were .3% below their total low esti-mate after deducting the low estimate ofthe unsold lots. The top 25 lots (3.9% ofthe total sold) accounted for $906,313(44.4% of the gross) and were .6% abovetheir total average estimate. All prices in-clude a 14% buyer’s premium on the first$100,000 and 10% thereafter. Jim Juliaserved as auctioneer.

LLaatt ee 1199tthh cc eennttuurr yy hhoo ll ll ooww -- ccaa rrvv eedd CCaannaaddaa ggoooossee bbyy PPhh iinn eeaass RRee eevveess oo ff LLoonngg PPoo iinntt ,, OOnnttaarr ii oo ((ee sstt .. $$3322,,220000//3366,,880000)) bb rroouugghhtt $$3322,,777755..

HHooll ll ooww-- ccaa rrvv eedd bb lluuee --wwiinn ggeedd tt eeaa ll hheenn bbyy RRoobbeerr tt EEll ll iiss tt oonn oo ff BBuurreeaauu,, II ll ll ii nnoo ii ss ((eess tt ..$$2277,,660000//3322 ,,220000 )) ssoo lldd ffoorr $$2233 ,,000000 ..

PPrreeeenn iinn gg mmaa ll llaa rrdd hheenn bb yy NNeeww OOrrll eeaannss cc aarr vviinngg tt eeaammooff GGee oorrggee FF rree ddeerr ii cckk ss ,, CChhaarr ll ee ss JJooeeff rraauu aanndd MMii ttcchhee ll llLLaaff rraannccee (( eess tt .. $$66990000//1100,,335500)) ssoo lldd tt oo aa pphhoonnee bb iiddddeerr ffoo rr $$1177,,225500..

GGrreeeenn --wwiinngg eedd tt eeaa ll hheenn bbyy CChhaarr ll ee ss BBeerrggmmaann oo ff AAssttoo rr ii aa,, OOrree ggoonn ((ee sstt .. $$1111,,550000//1166,,110000)) bb rroouugghh tt $$88005500..

44 Decoy Magazine

Wanted: Decoy Magazine is always looking forquality articles on old decoys and their makers.For information, contact Joe Engers at (302) 644-9001 or [email protected].

Wanted: Susquehanna Flats style canvasbackfrom Lake Koshkonong, Wisconsin with a“Hoard” brand. Contact Jim Stewart at (410) 442-2471 or [email protected].

Wanted: Songbird carvings by Bob Brown. Willpay top dollar. Contact Sandra McDaniel at(315) 447-8138.

Wanted:Decoys by Realistic Decoy Co. of Ke-waunee, Wisconsin, 1930s to 1940s. Lookingfor O/P canvasback, bluebill or mallard decoys.Will consider repaints depending on condition.Contact Curt Marsolek at (918) 314-4600, (918)787-7972 or [email protected].

Wanted:New Jersey decoys and shorebirds formy collection. I will pay top dollar for examplesin original condition. Also interested in any NJwaterfowl related historical documents and pho-tos. Contact: John Clayton at (410) 745-2955(h), (732) 674-7024 (c) or [email protected].

Wanted: Early 1940s and 1950s decoys by EdSnyder of Rio Vista, California. Contact MikeCole at (530) 682-8217.

Want to Buy:Old shorebird decoys in originalcondition and by contemporary carvers MarkMcNair and Cameron McIntyre. ContactBill Masengarb at (540) 721-0265 [email protected].

Wanted: Charlie & Edna Perdew decoys, duckand crow calls, paintings and miniatures. Anycondition, highest prices paid. Joe Tonelli, PBox 130, Spring Valley, IL 61362, (815) 664-4580, [email protected].

Ohio Decoys Wanted: Blair school, “Ohio”Dodge and decoys from Winous Point andOttawa Hunting clubs. Interested in historichunting memorabilia from Ohio (Peters & Austin). Jeff Hay, (269) 323-2020, [email protected].

Call Me First: I will pay good prices for goodoriginal paint Mason and Wildfowler decoys.Vaughn Walters, Grand River Decoys, (660)707-1389, www.grandriverdecoys.com.

Wanted: Jim Schmiedlin gunning and decora-tive decoys, any condition. Contact: Bill Abbate, PO Box 2306, New York, NY10021, (917) 975-7565.

Wanted: Absolute top prices paid for qualityWheeler, Denny, Coombs and Ken Harris decoys. Please call Eric Pitman at (315) 382-3218.

Top Dollar Paid for antique decoys in originalcondition from all regions. Photographs wel-come and confidentiality guaranteed. Contact:Stephen B. O’Brien Jr., 268 Newbury St.,Boston, MA 02116, (617) 536-0536, [email protected]. Visit our website atwww.americansportingart.com.

Wanted:Wildfowler decoys, all factories, ingood to excellent condition, also any informa-tion pertaining to Wildfowler decoys or theirmanufacturers. Contact Dick LaFountain at(631) 725-2034.

Wanted: Jim Schmiedlin gunning decoys. Excellent condition only. Contact: David E.Combs, PO Box 2767, Long Beach, CA90801, (562) 595-7401.

Decoys Wanted: Paying top dollar for classic olddecoys in excellent original condition. Individ-ual decoys or entire collections. Quiet and discreet. Classic Decoys, Alan G. Haid, 21 Outlook Dr., Darien, CT 06820, (203) 655-5188, [email protected].

Wanted: I will pay the highest cash prices for excellent examples of Southern decoys-Maryland, Virginia and the Carolinas. DickMcIntyre, Collectable Old Decoys, 158 Jasmine Hall Rd., Seabrook, SC 29940, (843)466-0250, [email protected].

Wanted: Wisconsin decoys in original paint. Especially interested in Moaks, Resops, Streys,Wakefields, Milwaukee Museum & Stoughtonschool carvers and Evans Factory. Herb Desch, 6 East Scott St. #3, Chicago, IL 60610, (312) 337-7957, [email protected].

Wanted:Decoys in original paint by top makers.For purchase or consignment. Paying top dollar,or consign to us without cost to you. All transac-tions held in strict confidence. Write or call:Russ Goldberger, PO Box 60, Rye, NH 03870,(603) 433-1770, [email protected] our large website at www.RJGAntiques.com.

For Sale: In the 1860s my great grandfatherAdolph tramped all over Dixie from Vicksburg to Savannah. Betcha he seenivory-billed woodpeckers! You can too. St. Charles 2012. The Decoy Poet.

For Sale: Hunting property, 22 acres plus, inMt. Sterling, NC. Old tobacco farm site.Rick fence on three sides, 3 springs, electricservice available, beautiful dogwood androsebud trees. Bear, deer and turkey hunting.Flat Branch Creek originates on property.Five miles off interstate I-40. $15,000 peracre. Call (225) 921-8585.

Miniatures: Pair of shovelers and Canadagoose by Russ Burr, Canada goose by BobMcGaw, pair of red-breasted mergansers byDoug Jester, mallard by Frank Adams andmallard pair by Tom Fitzpatrick. Call (302)645-7571 or [email protected].

For Sale: Illinois, River, Wisconsin, WardBros., Masons and other decoys. Visitwww.jbsdecoys.com to view selection.

Located Off I-80 in Kearney, Nebraska – De-coys, prints, shot boxes. Nebraska decoys,fibers, Masons. Contact Larry Peterson – cell(308) 233-2950, evenings (308) 234-2662,evenings, [email protected].

Calendar/Poster Collectors: Original padsand calendar sheets from Winchester, Rem-ington, UMC, DuPont, Austin and manyothers. 100% original – no reproductions.Call with the company and dates and I’ll see if I have it. Joe Tonelli, PO Box 130,Spring Valley, IL 61362, (815) 664-4580 [email protected].

PWM Shorebird Decoys: Specializing in thesale and purchase of shorebird decoys. Visitour Web site at www.pwmshorebirds.com. Contact: Bill Masengarb at (540) 721-0265or [email protected].

Have you seen our new website? Multipleimages of every decoy. Larger thumbnails.Steamlined menus. More content. A cleardiscussion of why you should consider work-ing with us. Still offering over 150 quality de-coys in original paint with full money-backguarantee. Updated daily. The best decoywebsite is now better than ever: www.RJGAntiques.com.

For Sale: Charlie “Speed” Joiner decoys, limited quantities. Call Dave Walker at (410) 939-4310.

For Sale: Decoys and shorebirds fromRaven’s Way Antiques Web site:www.ravenswayantiques.com. Jim & KathyTwining, PO Box 1477, North Kingston, RI02852, [email protected].

WANTED

ADVERTISING DEADLINEfor November/December 2011 issue is

January 13, 201230 words or less - $20.00

Additional words - $.50 each(6 issues prepaid - deduct 10%)

- CLASSIFIEDS MUST BE PREPAID -VISA/MASTERCARD ACCEPTED

DECOY MAGAZINEP.O. Box 787 • Lewes, DE 19958

(302) 644-9001 • Fax (302) 644-9003www.DecoyMag.com • [email protected]

FOR SALE

46 Decoy Magazine

Decoy Magazine is offering quality binders –a perfect way to store your back issues. Eachbinder holds a year’s worth of magazines.Send $9.95 per binder plus $5.00 shipping(add $3.00 for each additional binder) or$69.95 for 6 binders (includes shipping) to:Decoy Magazine, PO Box 787, Lewes, DE19958, (302) 644-9001. Visa/MC accepted.

For the Book Collector: Fleckenstein’sDecoy Books – “Decoys of the Mid-AtlanticRegion,” “Shorebird Decoys,” “Factory De-coys,” “New Jersey Decoys” and “SouthernDecoys,” – are available in special bound lim-ited editions with original watercolor decoypainting tipped in. Inscribed, signed andnumbered in very limited quantities. Emailfor photo of sample. Henry Fleckenstein Jr.,PO Box 577, Cambridge, MD 21613, (410)221-0076, [email protected].

For Sale: Great selection of antique and con-temporary decoys and shorebirds, as well assporting collectibles, at www.huntingclas-sics.com. Phil Jones, (937) 339-2853.

JamieReasonDecoys.comLongIslandDecoyForum.com

SERVICESAppraisals, Auction Representation, PrivateBrokerage, Collections Management: Con-tact Stephen B. O’Brien, Jr., 268 NewburyStreet, Boston, MA 02116, (617) 536-0536,Email: [email protected]: www.americansportingart.com.

Canadian Decoys: Buy, Sell, Trade, Ap-praise, Identify, Auction Consignments andRepresentation. Collection evaluation, re-finement and/or disposition. Paul Brisco,49 Bromleigh Ave., London, Ontario, N6G1V1, Canada, (519) 641-4790, Email:[email protected].

Buyer, Seller, Consultant, Auction Repre-sentation: Over 30 years experience dealing in top-quality original paint decoys.Strict confidence. Write or call: Russ Gold-berger, PO Box 60, Rye, NH 03870, (603) 433-1770. Visit the largest decoy website: www.RJGAntiques.com. Inquiries:[email protected].

Professional Decoy Restoration: Providinga complete range of restoration services forcollectors and dealers. Extensive experiencewith decoys and carvers from all regions ofthe USA and Canada. Masons a specialty.Paul Fortin, PO Box 713, Hanson, MA02341. (781) 447-2614, [email protected].

Decoy & Carving Books, also hunting storybooks. SASE. Hunting Rig Books, 124County Rd. CB, Neenah, WI 54956. Formore information call (920) 725-4350 or(920) 725-4421 or visit our website atwww.huntingrigbooks.com.

Quality Handmade Decoy Bags for thosespecial ducks in your life. Various styles ranging from dealer bags to deluxe bags en-suring maximum protection for your auctionpurchases and quality birds. Call Beverly at (732) 741-4033 or email [email protected].

Southern Decoys: The finest selection ofSouthern decoys anywhere. Call for selection.Dick McIntyre, Collectable Old Decoys, 158 Jas-mine Hall Rd., Seabrook, SC 29940, (843) 466-0250, [email protected].

Shorebirds, Shorebirds, Shorebirds:Antique shorebird decoys. Offering all thedifferent species and makers from every Atlantic coastal gunning region. SchillerMartin, 2657 North East 26th Terrace, Ft.Lauderdale, FL 33306, summer (336) 385-6879, winter (954) 566-1286.

Attention Subscribers: Decoy Magazine of-fers a comprehensive index for all its issues,listed by maker and topic, from 1979 to2011. Send $5.95 to PO Box 787, Lewes, DE 19958, (302) 644-9001.

E-Mail Decoy List: Old working decoys for sale, primarily Chesapeake Bay & Chincoteague. Old gunners include Holly,Jackson, Heverin, Boyd, Lockard, Barnes,Currier, McGaw, Mitchell, Gibson &Cockey. Later birds include Bryan, McKin-ney, Litzenberg & Pierce. Also Hancock,Hudson, Jester, Reed & Birch, plus othersfrom elsewhere. Contact Jim Trimble at(703) 768-7264 or [email protected].

For Sale: Crowell pintail, wigeon, black andBBP; Shourds brant and goldeneye hen;Ward black and can hen; Chambers red-head; Buchanan blue-winged teal hen;Nichol American merganser; Perdew mal-lard; Graves cans and mallards; Boyd BBPand Lincoln GP. Masons – Premier can, mal-lards, blacks and Chesapeake Bay can; Chal-lenge black, brant, mallard, goldeneye, cootand merganser; Glasseye can hen and wigeonhen; Glasseye willet, dove and yellowlegs;and Tackeye black-bellied plover, willet and split-tail dowitcher. Contemporary – McNair whimbrel and yellowlegs; and Han-son bluebills. Minis - nice selection by Crowell; Ward pintail pair and mallard; Harris wood duck; and McNair willet and whimbrel. Alan G. Haid, PO Box 1211,Darien, CT 06820, (203) 655-5188 or [email protected]. Visit us on the Web atwww.decoymag.com/haid.

PUBLICATIONS“Minnesota Duck Decoys – yesterday’s andtoday’s folk artists” by Doug Lodermeier. Au-thor has a small quantity of books still availableat $85 plus $5 S/H. Order yours now beforethey are gone! Call (612) 922-9674 or visitwww.dougandpaul.com for order form and moreinformation. Credit cards accepted.

“Gunnin’ Birds” by Kroghie Andresen, fea-turing the decoys of over 200 carvers fromBack Bay, VA and Currituck and DareCounty, NC, from the author’s collection.400 pages with over 1300 illustrations. $70plus $7 S/H. Andresen Advisory LLC, 810Museum Dr., Charlotte, NC 28207, (704)517-1941, www.Gunnin’Birds.com.

Decoy Magazine: Limited supply of sold outissues available for $20 each plus shipping.Call or email for selection, (302) 644-9001,[email protected].

For Sale: “The McCleery Auction,” edited byGard & Shaw, a comprehensive overview of themost important event in decoys history, 226pages, $150 plus $10 S/H. Ron Gard, 37667Forest Lane, Suite 124, #1155, Dallas, TX75244, (214) 357-6159, [email protected].

Attention Subscribers: All of our classifiedsare listed at no additional charge on our web-site at www.decoymag.com. Send us your clas-sified today. Prepay for one year for a 10%discount, (302) 644-9001, [email protected]/MC accepted.

Bound Volumes: Decoy Magazine is offeringlimited edition bound volumes: 1995/1996,1997/1998, 1999/2000, 2001/2002,2003/2004, 2005/2006 and 2007/2008 (14 is-sues in each). The 2009/2010 issues arepresently in for binding. These handsome pro-fessionally bound volumes ($195 each plus$10.95 shipping) look like encyclopedias on theshelf. Buy the whole set for $1295. The1995/1996, 1997/1998 and 1999/2000 edi-tions are available in very limited quantities, sodon’t miss this opportunity to get them all.Decoy Magazine, PO Box 787, Lewes, DE19958, (302) 644-9001, Visa/MC accepted.

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44TH ANNUALHENRY DECOY SHOW

Sunday, Feb. 12, 20128 am – 2 pm

HENRY-SENACHWINE HIGH SCHOOL

State Route 29, Henry, IllinoisFor info: Bruce Bauter (309) 364-4104

or [email protected]

Documents

Sept october 11 decoymag pgs2 47 goby