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SUPERB & VERY RARE HEN MALLARD c1895 TOM CHAMBERS Hollow TORONTO Wood Duck Decoy a.imagelink {color:#000000;} a:hover.imagelink {color:#000000;} a:visited.imagelink {color:#00A8A8;} a.imagelink img.saleimage { border: 2px solid #000000; } a:visited.imagelink img.saleimage { border: 2px solid #00A8A8; }

THOMAS CHAMBERS (1860-1948) Toronto,Canada (ST. CLAIR FLATS SHOOTING COMPANY; St. Clair Flats of Michigan & Canada)

• Tom Chambers "Owned","HuntedAt" and "Managed"The St.Clair Flats Shooting Company,with OtherFamous Ontario Carvers Like David Ward (1839-1912), George Warin (1830-1905)and John R. Wells (1861-1953). These Were Some of the Earliest Flats Carvers and Were native to Toronto. At the Same Time in the Same Area, Some of Michigan's Earliest Documented Carvers Were Active.Another Equally Impressive List, But of Michigan Origin, WereHenry Sampier (1856-1938), Along with Harsen’s Island locals, Charles and Fred Unger (1851-1925) andZeke McDonald (1849-1938); Plus Chris Smith(1861-1937)of Algonac and Nate Quillen (1839-1908)of Pointe Mouille – All of these Men are among the Earliest DocumentedSt. Clair FlatsDecoy Makers.

Below Picture; All of the Great "Flats" Clubs Were Located Somewhere on This Map, Where the St. Clair River Ends, And The St. Clair Flats Begins!!)

(And All of the Men In The Above Paragraph, Hunted Somewhere on This Map!!)

EXTREMELY RARE (Made Few Hen Mallards), 119+ YEAR OLD, EXCELLENT CONDITION; c1895TOM "King" CHAMBERS(1860-1948) "EGG-SHELL HOLLOW (An Incredible 1-lb. 7-oz.)"; HEN MALLARD DUCK WOOD DUCK DECOY;ORIGINALLY Born, Hunted & Lived in TORONTO, CANADA (Later: Hunted & Worked on theSt. Clair Flats of Michigan & Ontario; Lived in Wallaceburg, Canada)

• AWESOME, EXTREMELY HOLLOW DECOY fromARGUABLY CANADA'S MOSTFAMOUS CARVER & OUTSTANDING WATERFOWLER!!
• BEAUTIFUL OLDORIGINAL PAINTon the BOTTOM,BILL& BACKand a Mix of Original and In-Use Gunning Painton the Balance!!
• OUTSTANDING,IMPORTED GERMAN MEDIUM-BROWN GLASS EYES!!
• EXCELLENTOVERALL CONDITION -and- STRUCTURALLY MINT!!
• VERY NICEPAINT CRAZING TO THE ORIGINAL PAINT; See Close Up Pics of This Awesome Head & Bill!!
• THIS DECOY Has An AWESOME Head and Neck. The BODY FLOWS Beautifully Up Into The HEAD. The NECK PORTION of the BODY TWISTS From Its Left to Right -and then- As The NECK Itself TWISTS From Left to Right,The HEADThen TURNED to its LEFT!!! (It's AWESOME andThis RAREKIND of POSE COULDN'T be CARVE TWICE!!!)

RIG MARKED: "GEO. M. HENDRIE" (George M. Hendrie)

Chambers Carved this Decoy Specifically for George M. Hendrie,whileHendrie wasa Member of The St. Clair Flats Shooting Company from1889-1943!!

Co-incidentally, Chambers and Hendrie, Were at the Club at the Same Time and Number of Years! This is More SoThan ANY Other Two Men's Tenure and Time-Line with SCFSC!!

• VERY RARE HEN MALLARD, ONE OF ONLY A COUPLE MADE BY HIM& VERY LATE IN HIS CAREER!
• In this Condition and thisLater Tom ChambersForm & Style, Makes This a Hard-to-Find & VERY Early Michigan and Ontario "Flats" Region Decoy!!!
• THIS IS JUST A BEAUTIFUL CHAMBER'S DECOY with the his 17", LONG-BODIED STYLE and PERFECTLY SCULPTED HEAD from HIS FINEST and MOST SOUGHT AFTER PERIOD!!!

SHIPPING INCLUDES INSURANCE

This119+ yearold"VERY Hollow" Cedar, RAREHen MallardDuck decoy was carvedbyThomas "Tom" Chambers(1860-1947), who grew up andretired in Toronto, Canada, but spentmost of his Adult Life duck hunting and working on the St. Clair Flats area of Lake St. Clair, betweenOntario on the Canadian side, and Michigan on the U.S. side. More specifically and for most of his life,Tom Chamberscould befound waterfowl hunting or working at the St. Clair Flats Shooting Company, alongside other noted Toronto hunter/carvers that routinely made the westward trek from Toronto to the Lake St. Clair Flats to hunt ducks and geese. However, whenChambers was growing up, and then in retirement,much like other Toronto gunners that either relocatedto or frequently gunned Lake St. Clair, Chambers returned to Toronto forhis "golden years" and to hunt where it all began for him, Toronto Harbor.

Thomas Chambers led a quiet and solitary life and spent his early years as a competent, skilled and effective market hunter in the Toronto Harbor.Tom Chambers began to develop and receive recognition as an expert waterfowler while he worked at the St. Anne'sGun Club in the St. Clair Flatsbeginning in the 1880's.

c1895 Photo of ST. ANNE'S GUN CLUB, Where TOM CHAMBERS First Gained Employment Managing a WaterfowlHunting Club for the Affluent!!!

c1890 Photo of ST. ANNE'S GUN CLUB,As a ResultTOM CHAMBERS Diligence and His Daily Maintenance & Management Input, Hunter's Like These EnjoyedUnparalleled Duck Hunting Success!!

"King" Tom Chambers stayed on as an employee with St. Anne's Club until it burned to the ground in 1899. Immediately after the fire at St. Anne's, The St. Clair Flats Shooting Company scooped up the multi-talented Chambersand bestowed upon him the titles and responsibilities of Superintendent, as well as Marsh Manager.Tom Chambers stayed on there as Manager and Club Decoy Carver for forty-three years, a career that spanned from 1900 to 1943.

1872Photo of ST. CLAIR FLATS SHOOTING CLUB, Where TOM CHAMBERS Was Superintendent and Marsh Manager from 1900-1943. Also, Where He Carved This Hen mallard up for sale for MEMBER GEORGE M. HENDRIE (Member 1889-1943).

Coincidently, this Rare Hen Mallard up for sale was carved for St. Clair Flats Company member George M. Hendrie (b. Feb. 4, 1863), who was one of the club's longest active members and who was a member for almost the exact samenumber of yearsandduring the same time period or eraas Chambers. As previously stated, Chambers was at SCFSC from 1900 to 1943, and George Hendrie was a member from 1889 to 1943. The only reason that both men ended up leaving at the same time (1943), is that Chambers was then 84 years old and unable to perform his duties, and George Hendrie died in Manhattan, New York on November 18, 1942, at the age of 79.

Above Chart Shows Where Chronologically GEORGE M. HENDRIE Fell as a Member (It is Unknown How Many Decoys Chambers Carved for Hendrie, But Like this Hen Mallard Up For sale, it Was Likely a Fairly Decent Quantity). The Chart Also Shows 2 of the 6 Hendrie Family Members that Would Belong to the Club through 1975!

Chambers was friends with George Warin, John R. Wells and David Ward, but he still managed to set his decoys apartwith the delicate shape ofhis decoy'sheads and bills, along with his wonderfully flowing necks into his gorgeous heads, and thenumerous head positions he carved.Chamber's decoys are either solid or hollow, but all of them have an extended lower neck from thedecoy's bodyfor a head seat.Chamber's head seats or shelves, are all beautifully carved into the body and they all are cut in precisely and meet the "carved to meet" neck bases with perfection. Early decoys have rounded heads and extensive bill carving.Later ones have flatter heads, little detailed carving and a smaller overall construction. With these decoys, Chambers had to fore-go a more elegant look to accommodate the needs of a hunter. The colors on many of his decoys are muted with feather combing on the backs and the wings.decoys, Chambers employed shades of dull red and grey, which heblended and scratch paintedwhich gives many of those decoysa very life-like and realistic appearance. He marked some of his laterdecoys with the brand"Thos. Chambers Maker",and he sold them for $75 a dozen, which was quite a large sum of money at the time. Chambers' decoys are both aesthetically pleasing and functional. Over the course of Chamber's carving career, he created a wide variety of these beautiful decoys for Club Members, which included Redheads, Canada geese,Canvasbacks and Black Ducks.Chambers was also known to have carved a very small number of Pintails and Teal, and even rarer is an Outstanding Drake Wood Duck and Very Rare Mallards...And Hen Mallards Like this Decoy Up For sale is Even Rarer Yet!!!! Thomas Chambers retired in 1943, but at this time decoy collecting was in its infancy but catching on,which assured Tom Chambers place in Decoy Carving History!!

TheABOVE CHARTShows Where TOM CHAMBERS Falls in the Time-Line of CANADIAN and U. S. CARVERS in North American HISTORY!!

Although other carvers were supplying decoys to St. Clair Flats Shooting Company members, and the others were having a transference of style and form, Tom Chambers was and had developed a style that set him apart, and thus his decoys were of particularly high demand of members. However, when it comes to club member George Hendrie, he was one of the longest running members at 54 years, so his brand is found on several other carvers work, including John R. Wells and David Ward.

Photo of JOHN R. WELLS PintailsHe Carved forGEORGE HENDRIE and HAVE HENDRIE'S HOT BRAND!!

Photo ofAWESOME TOM CHAMBERS CanvasbackHe Carved forGEORGE HENDRIE and HAVEHENDRIE'S HOT BRAND!!

Overall,Thomas Chamberswas anexcellent duck hunter, intelligent marsh environment manager and wood worker, although not by trade but rather self-taught to a degree. As previously noted,Tom Chambers,worked 43 years at The St. Clair Flats Shooting Company, and as a sideline to his normal duties, Chambers carved outstanding and effective duck and goose decoys thatset a true "standard of excellence"in not only the region, but as good as any on the continent during the same time period. And the awesome decoys that Chambers was making did not go un-noticed,as hisbeautiful and well hollowed decoys would end up being copied by legions of men from the Toronto area, toall of the way west to the St. Clair Flats area betweenMichigan and Ontario.Much like thisOutstanding Hen Mallarddecoy up for sale,Chamberspioneering decoys were created withan elegance that ranged from somewhat simpleyet supremelyfunctional,to finely detailed and ornately aesthetic.And his Beautifulandstrikingly paintedexteriors were just the final touch on a superbly formed decoy that was hollowed out in some cases to a fraction of an inch. This is wonderfully and clearly evident on thisThomas Chambers Hen MallardDuck decoy up for sale, as it weighs a paltry 1-lb. 7-oz. This is very light considering that this "egg-shell" hollowed decoy is a "commanding of attention" 17", which is one of his very sought after "long-bodied decoys.

In the beginning, The St. Clair Flats was the gunning home away from home for Tom Chambers, J. R. Wells, George Warin and David Wardamong a fewother notable Toronto native hunters. Lake Huron funnels into Lake St. Clairand disperses into a 100,000 acre river delta known as the St. Clair Flats. The channels that cut through the islands and marshland that form the delta are from west to east; the North Channel, Middle, South, St. Clair (shipping channel) in the U.S. and the Bassett, Chemotogan, Johnston and Chenal Ecarte in Canada. Some of the islandsin between the channelsare Strawberry, Dickenson, McDonald's,Sear's, Harsen's in the U.S. and Bassett Island, Squirrel, Walpole and St. Anne's of Canada (all of the 4listed Canadian islandscomprise the Walpole IslandOntario Native American Reservation).

Of Michigan origin, the St. Clair Flats was also home toa group of other carversthat included Henry "Budgeon"Sampier, Zeke McDonald (1849-1938) of McDonald's Island, Fred Unger (1851-1925) of Harsen's Island andChris Smith (1861-1937)of Algonac, Michigan. Smith's decoys were in most part dictated by the nature of the arduous way they hunted, but also were most likely influenced by other decoys being gunned over by hunt clubs and others at nearby hunting clubs and individuals.

TOM CHAMBERS andthe CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS SMITH (CC or Chris Smith) RUN-INS!!

Like many areas where 2 Huntersgun over the same gunning grounds,Tom Chambers was well acquainted with and was anadversary at times of Chris Smith.Tom Chambershunted the St. Clair Flats simply a mile or two directly across the river from the home of Chris Smith. Chris Smith, who would eventually start one ofHistory's Most Important boat building companies; Chris Craft.But long before that, Chris Smith could be found at The St. Clair Flats Shooting Company's clubhouse and boathouse, where he fixedmotors and other business needs of the club. There were many gun clubs operating nearby in the St. Clair Flats on both the American and Canadian sides, and Chris Smithhad several "Run-Ins" with Tom Chambers. On a few occasions Smith and Chambers disputed the boundaries that the shooting club enforced, as well as differences in opinion as it pertained to American and Canadian game laws. Smith,on at least one occasion, threatened to let theprocess carry through in the Canadian courts to settle the issues. The Canada Club was just a short distance across the St. Clair River from Harsen’s Island in the central part of the St. Clair Flats. So when it is all said and done,many of the early carvers helped establish the “Flats” style of decoy. Although it would be quite difficult and maybe a losing battle in trying to determine whowas the originator of the early "Flats" decoy, it is most likely that an ongoingtransference of style, form and construction between all of the American and Canadiandecoy makersevolved into what is considered the early and atypical "Flats" decoy.

Chris Smith c1925 Running His Global Boat Business!

There is a distinctivelook to all ofTom Chambers, decoys and all of hisbirds are consistent, flowing, smooth, balanced, very well constructed and the overall look is of a beautifully crafted decoy that realistically imitates a live bird in form and appearance. Considering the construction, Chambers's decoys are quite sophisticated as theyare fully hollowed and have alarge screw holding the head from within. The oval bottom-boards are held in place by as many as36modestly sizedflathead nails and Chambers decoys that are"leakers" areExtremelyRare. On his raised head decoys, the neck shelf is very highly raised to receive a beautifully carved head with a carefully detailed bill that features exquisitely carved head/bill separation, a tall andnarrow bill base,and a V-shaped chin, that wonderfully contours into a well-rounded and somewhat thin bill end that has its nail formed from grooves on the underside of the bill and Wondrously "Cut In"Mandibles. The Brown glass eyes are first class German Taxidermy eyes.When it came to any of the materials used or hardware, etc. Chambersspared no expense in an effort to create superb decoys that would last for well over the next century. Most of the heads are perfectly intact as these feather weight decoys did not severely stretch the limits of these often "pencil sized" necks. This is quite the opposite to the upper Chesapeake Bay decoys made around the same time, as those decoys routinely show neck damage as those very heavy decoys put considerable amount of stress on the neck after years of being jerked up out of the water after a day's gunning is over.Although thisHen MallardDuck Decoy up for salehas a paintpatternthat is somewhatsimple,the paint job isvery correct andthis Original Paintwas beautifully applied, even the very old gunning touch up areas. The brush-strokes onmany of his decoysare feathery like this Hen Mallard up for sale,while others show an innovative combing.The decoysthat have survived like thisAwesome Hen Mallardup for sale is no doubt due toChambers's utility, high quality and most-likely careful use.Since a great many of Tom Chamber's decoysdo nothave shot in them, it indicates a high level of pride in the art form and sportsmanship in hunting over the rig.

TOM CHAMBER'S DECOYS HAVE NOT GONE UN-NOTICED BY COLLECTOR'S AS THE PHOTOS BELOW

All In all, thisGreat Thomas Chambers Hen Mallard Wooden Duck Decoyup for sale has great form and encompasses all of the great characteristics of themid-point decoys in his careerand quite possibly most functional and aesthetic decoys to be made for use on the St. Clair Flats and Toronto Harbor. Tom Chamberswas also known forthe awesome consistency of his decoys as well as the outstanding quality and delicate beauty. This decoy up for sale is in excellentcondition and the seam where the bottom board was attached is still in excellent, entirelysealed condition that you could hunt over today and it wouldn't miss a beat. Like manyhollow decoy carvers around the country during the same time period, the bottom board was not only nailed and/or screwed on, but the joint was also fortified with a white lead/based, caulk/adhesive.This great bird is also as solid as the day it was made and has a great, up-swept tail and astoundingly detailed head/bill separation and Chamber's Outstanding Head and neck that are carved in beautifully and attached on the top of a very high neck shelf thatsimply acts as a pedestal to showcase this awesome hen mallardhead. The High Head on this decoy is stillas firmly attached as the day it was made with the quality, large screw that was used to hold it on from the inside of the decoy before the bottom board was attached. AnotherOntario feature on this decoy which is exemplary is the way the neck is perfectly flowing and carved in to thehigh, raised neck shelf. The decoy is carved and painted perfectly symmetrically as well as the mounting of theBeautiful German Mid-brownTaxidermist' Glass Eyes. Along withall of the other "Flats" carvers, Chamber'swas one ofthe flatsoldest documented decoy makers and clearly among the best and most visionary men, as well as one of themen that helped hold the bar up highfor aSt. Clair Flats hollow, bottom-board decoy. Thisawesome decoy measures asignificantand very visible17" long x6-1/2" wide x a stately 6-1/4" talland weighs arig-manageable, paltryand hollow1-lb. 7-oz. This commanding sizeyet very lightweight, evenfor a hollow decoy, enabled Tom Chamber's decoys to ride high and be seen from a distance, whether it be Toronto harbor orthe St. Clair Flats. The outstanding and striking headwas beautifullyconceived, executedandthen detailed wonderfully to boot. The body itself is a mix of theMostly Original paint and an in-use touch-up to scattered and sparsespots on the body. Thepatina to this 119 year old oil-based marine paint on the head is truly outstanding with its beautiful burnished feathering. Considering the decoy only has3 tiny shot holes and its perfect structural condition, it is clear thatChambers not only made a decoy of uncompromising quality, butHendrie and everyone else that possibly owned this decoy after him took very good care ofit and probably was an excellent wing shot. If you have any questions or would like a close-up of an area feel free to email me. Thank you for looking

The first20 Photos in the Photo section of this listing are of this ExtraordinaryTom ChambersDuckDecoy up for sale.The Last4 Photos are of other Awesome and Important Decoys also Carved by Chambers and Includes Some of His Most Famous Divers!!.

TheFollowing photosare of other Thomas Chamber "Flats" decoys. Someshow More of a CleanToronto School of Carvers Influence and Others With More of a Later "Flats" Look. The similarities between the Michigan Flats carversand the Toronto School CarversWas Clearly Nocoincidence considering theoverlap of the men and their hunting grounds:

Another Photo of One of Hunter and Carver Tom Chamber's Canvasback.

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL AND GRACEFUL CANVASBACK DECOY!!