Steve Sanford
Well-known member
All (and especially Eric)~
Just yesterday morning I got a note from Eric that gave me a lead on a fine old decoy anchor made by D. C. Sanford Company of Bridgeport, CT. Eric thought I might like to add it to my "collection" of such anchors. I have about 80 decoy anchors - most of which I have hanging from the ceiling in my shop. I have not "collected " these per se. Rather, almost all of them are "memorabilia/gunning gear" that my Dad and I accumulated over our many decades in pursuit of ducks, geese and brant. I have always found them especially appealing because they share lots with both decoys and gunning vessels. The great variety reflects both the different requirements of gunning situations and also the differing views of the different gunners. Like decoys and boats, some are made in factories, others are "manufactured" by the gunners themselves.
I will not be pursuing Eric's thoughtful lead - only because I already have such an anchor hanging in my shop.
Eric's note reminded me of one I received several years ago from old friend and duckboats.net member Bill Ferrar - from Long Island. It was for a mushroom anchor from the same manufacturer.
At the time, I was unaware that D. C. Sanford had ever made such a style.
Bill sent me an ad - maybe eBay? - that I could not resist. Many gunners I know - especially us "veterans" - spend our dollars judiciously. We are usually not susceptible to impulse buying. But...I shelled out the $25 right away - and have been happy ever since to see it hanging not far from my wood stove. However, when showing it to visitors, I always tell the same tale. First, of the four score or so decoy anchors in my collection, I have purchased just 2 or 3, I think. The 25 dollar benchmark is the high point - the pinnacle - the zenith - it is the "leader in the clubhouse". I cannot imagine investing again such an exorbitant amount in a single anchor anytime in the future. More important, though, I also provide context. I explain how I have been around boats all my life. I have had many, many boat anchors over the decades. I believe I have never paid as much as $25 for any of them...
In any event, the surname of the "manufacturer" (see more below) is not a coincidence.
David C. Sanford is in fact a relative - though quite distant. He was born in the Nutmeg State in the late 19th century (1870 - 1940). He had a foundry in Bridgeport and - on his military draft papers described his occupation as "manufacturer". We are both descended from a Thomas Sandford (the middle D in our surname has been lost many times over the centuries - usually by careless clerks....) who was born in England in 1607. Sometime after the Mayflower found its way to New England, Sandford's sons followed. A couple stayed in Connecticut and helped found Hartford. Two others headed south to eastern Long Island. My connections go back to them.
We (my older brother Ted is the genealogist/historian in the family) do not yet know the later history of the company - but it was still "manufacturing" into the 1950s and probably 1960s. Luckily for us gunners, D. C. SANFORD made anchors and keel ballast for Wildfowlers Decoys - not far away in Old Saybrook. The brand below is from a Superior Model Pintail Hen.
I have long admired Wildfowlers decoys and grew up gunning over some of my Dad's. In recent years, I have been assembling a rig of puddlers that I restore to hunt over. (I only look for those which are worn enough - or been re-painted - to have little collectible value,.)
As I have mentioned elsewhere, we - the Long Island Decoy Collectors Association - will be featuring WILDFOWLER (and HERTER's) decoy in our main exhibit at the March 8 Annual Show in Hauppauge.
All the best - and thanks again, Eric!
SJS
Just yesterday morning I got a note from Eric that gave me a lead on a fine old decoy anchor made by D. C. Sanford Company of Bridgeport, CT. Eric thought I might like to add it to my "collection" of such anchors. I have about 80 decoy anchors - most of which I have hanging from the ceiling in my shop. I have not "collected " these per se. Rather, almost all of them are "memorabilia/gunning gear" that my Dad and I accumulated over our many decades in pursuit of ducks, geese and brant. I have always found them especially appealing because they share lots with both decoys and gunning vessels. The great variety reflects both the different requirements of gunning situations and also the differing views of the different gunners. Like decoys and boats, some are made in factories, others are "manufactured" by the gunners themselves.
I will not be pursuing Eric's thoughtful lead - only because I already have such an anchor hanging in my shop.
Eric's note reminded me of one I received several years ago from old friend and duckboats.net member Bill Ferrar - from Long Island. It was for a mushroom anchor from the same manufacturer.
At the time, I was unaware that D. C. Sanford had ever made such a style.
Bill sent me an ad - maybe eBay? - that I could not resist. Many gunners I know - especially us "veterans" - spend our dollars judiciously. We are usually not susceptible to impulse buying. But...I shelled out the $25 right away - and have been happy ever since to see it hanging not far from my wood stove. However, when showing it to visitors, I always tell the same tale. First, of the four score or so decoy anchors in my collection, I have purchased just 2 or 3, I think. The 25 dollar benchmark is the high point - the pinnacle - the zenith - it is the "leader in the clubhouse". I cannot imagine investing again such an exorbitant amount in a single anchor anytime in the future. More important, though, I also provide context. I explain how I have been around boats all my life. I have had many, many boat anchors over the decades. I believe I have never paid as much as $25 for any of them...
In any event, the surname of the "manufacturer" (see more below) is not a coincidence.
David C. Sanford is in fact a relative - though quite distant. He was born in the Nutmeg State in the late 19th century (1870 - 1940). He had a foundry in Bridgeport and - on his military draft papers described his occupation as "manufacturer". We are both descended from a Thomas Sandford (the middle D in our surname has been lost many times over the centuries - usually by careless clerks....) who was born in England in 1607. Sometime after the Mayflower found its way to New England, Sandford's sons followed. A couple stayed in Connecticut and helped found Hartford. Two others headed south to eastern Long Island. My connections go back to them.
We (my older brother Ted is the genealogist/historian in the family) do not yet know the later history of the company - but it was still "manufacturing" into the 1950s and probably 1960s. Luckily for us gunners, D. C. SANFORD made anchors and keel ballast for Wildfowlers Decoys - not far away in Old Saybrook. The brand below is from a Superior Model Pintail Hen.
I have long admired Wildfowlers decoys and grew up gunning over some of my Dad's. In recent years, I have been assembling a rig of puddlers that I restore to hunt over. (I only look for those which are worn enough - or been re-painted - to have little collectible value,.)
As I have mentioned elsewhere, we - the Long Island Decoy Collectors Association - will be featuring WILDFOWLER (and HERTER's) decoy in our main exhibit at the March 8 Annual Show in Hauppauge.
All the best - and thanks again, Eric!
SJS
. Thank you very much for taking the time to share your anchor history and inclinations.