Conservation Corner: January 14, 2002

Mississippi Once Famous In The Manufacturing Of Duck Decoys
by James L. Cummins

With the duck season in full swing, the thoughts of most duck hunters are around a pair of greenheads cupped in front of a blind. Yet, we seldom think about the economic importance of hunting and fishing products in Mississippi. Here, we'll take a look at the history and importance of duck decoys in Mississippi - something that once provided many jobs to Senator Trent Lott's home - Pascagoula.

The making of duck decoys in Mississippi came along at a time when decoy manufacturing on the East Coast and in New Orleans was booming. This occurred from about 1840 to 1870. After the Civil War, market hunting boomed. And as transportation methods improved, the demand for duck decoys increased.

There are not a lot of decoys left from this period. Many of these were burned in fireplaces and wood stoves for warmth during the depression. We also don't have many decoys from the period after the Civil War to around the turn of the century and, consequently, we don't know a lot about those. However, we do have a fair amount of history about the decoys made in Pascagoula, Mississippi.

There were five decoy manufacturing companies in Pascagoula which include the Hudson Decoy Company, Pascagoula Decoy Company, Poitevin Brothers, Inc. and Animal Trap Company of Pascagoula, Inc. Poitevin Brothers started making decoys as early as 1927. They made what is known as the "Singing River" brand of decoys. On or about 1942 Animal Trap Company of Lititz, Pennsylvania, purchased Poitevin Brothers, Inc. to manufacture wooden, lathe-turned decoys in Pascagoula.

Animal Trap also purchased Hudson Decoy Company and produced birds under the Victor brand. They also produced "Vac-Sta" decoys which were lighter and more stable. Herter's currently uses "Vac-Sta" technology. In the 1960s Animal Trap changed its name to Woodstream Corporation. In 1971 this famous decoy plant in Pascagoula closed its doors forever. At least the name of Victor, which originated in 1886 as the name of a steel trap, lives on.

The Pascagoula Decoy Company was in business from 1941 to 1956. In those 15 years, they produced thousands of decoys that were sold under the name "PADCO." These decoys were sold by jobbers, hardware dealers and sporting goods stores all over the United States.

The area in and around Pascagoula, Mississippi, was nationally known for its abundance of tupelo gum, which is a wood that is extremely buoyant, light in weight and plentiful. These lathe-turned decoys were very crude and not very detailed. The lathe marks simulated feathers and for eyes, glass was used.

James L. Cummins is Executive Director of the Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Foundation in Stoneville, Mississippi. Known as "Wildlife Mississippi," the Foundation is a non-profit, conservation organization founded to conserve, restore and enhance fish, wildlife and plant resources throughout Mississippi.