In doing some research for an upcoming Illinois auction, I came across a decoy carved by an Oshkosh resident that had frequented (much earlier) some of the same areas in Oshkosh and on Lake Winnebago that I had. The decoy was well used but beautiful, with a high head, a bluebill drake carved in the traditional Winnebago style.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what I was able to find about this carver:<\/strong><\/p>\n Ed began carving later in life and was most active as a carver for about 15 years between 1925 and 1940. He carved his decoys from old telephone poles he obtained from the Oshkosh Public Works Deptartment. Ed did not have access to power tools in the 1920\u2019s, so he used hand tools, including a hand axe to chop the bodies out of the telephone poles; draw knives, rasps, files and knives were used to give final shape to his decoys. It was noted that Ed carved some bill detail in his decoys, used glass eyes and his final oil painting had some resemblance to the classic \u201cMason Decoy Co.<\/a>\u201d swirls on the breast and tails. Most of his painting style was very simple, but done well to represent the species he was trying to duplicate.<\/p>\n![\"Ed](\"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Ed-Burgert-Bluebill-2-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>While in Oshkosh, WI and attending UW-Oshkosh in the 1970\u2019s, my wife and I lived in a small, rented bungalow on Hazel Street, near the northern shore of Lake Winnebago. On a good day we could see Miller\u2019s Bay on the Lake and were only a few blocks away from Menominee Park, also located on Lake Winnebago. I was fortunate to \u00a0frequently accompany my next door neighbor for fishing and boating on Winnebago, as well as viewing the vast number of waterfowl calling lake Winnebago home\u2026 of course all of this was when I wasn\u2019t studying!<\/p>\n![\"Ed](\"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Ed-Burgert-bluebill-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>Edward Burgert was born in 1873 and according to his obituary, lived the majority of his life in the Oshkosh area. Burgert was employed as the Park Keeper at North Park in Oshkosh (now renamed Menominee Park). Ed was a passionate waterfowler from youth and hunted and fished on Lake Winnebago, and in particular in the Miller Bay area of northern Lake Winnebago.<\/p>\n
![\"Ed](\"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Ed-Burgert-bluebills-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>My research tells me that Ed carved about 1,000 decoys in his lifetime, which included canvasback, bluebill and mallards. It\u2019s been shared that Ed was assisted by a friend named George Voss. George actually worked for Ed at North Park (Menominee Park) and was his hunting companion on Winnebago. Some of Ed\u2019s decoys were used on Miller\u2019s Bay but many were sold to other Lake Winnebago waterfowl hunters. Written history tells us that he charged $1 for his decoys back in the day.<\/p>\n