decoy ID help

J

Justin Harrison

Active member
someone on another board asked me to post on some of the decoy joints and see if i can come up w/ anything...

this bird was bought in an antique store in martha's vineyard.....guys says the only thing he knows for sure is it was made by "freeborn".

how he knows this, i have no clue as there are no markings on the bird so far as i can tell from the pics.

in any case, this seems like a case of "wanting to make more out of a decoy than there is" but i told him i'd ask.

any thoughts?

justin
 
pic would help i'd imagine:

963912060_MBWot-L.jpg


963912167_BGGAk-L.jpg


963912115_B9Puq-L.jpg

 
Justin,

That's a cool decoy! I love the screws on the bottom. the weight, and it's simplicity. Now, I'm by no means a collector and this is only a guess -- I'd guess it's a Michigan decoy because the head reminds me of a Mason, it's simple in paint and form, and it has a flat, wide bottom board. Good stuff for Lake St. Claire and Erie. So, if I'm way off base... :-/ oh well.

Good luck to your search.
 
It has distinctive features for sure. Post it up over on the carving forum. Many of the vintage guys watch that site. My good friend Ky may know the maker, I bet he would.

Hitch
 
the swinging lead weight was common to decoys on Lakes Erie and Ontario, at least in the Buffalo to Toronto region...my first rig (purchased used many moons ago) all had that kind of ballast, no keel.
 
Swing weights were commonly used on Hamilton harbour, Ontario. I think they might have originated there. All old decoys from this area have swing weights.
 
I googled "Hamilton Harbour decoy" right away I got the name Willy Freeborn a decoy carver from Hamilton Ontario. Like I said earlier most decoys from this area have swing weights. I can't find any pictures of his work. I'll keep looking.
 
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