Lure collecting can hook an angler
Here’s a universal truth courtesy of the outdoors world: If you’re an angler you’re also a lure collector.
The proof is in our tackle boxes, gear bags and fishing vests.
My collection dates to the first Arbogast Jitterbug I bought when I was a kid in the 1970s. I climbed trees to retrieve that lure from snags.
It’s still with me along with oily, earlymodel rubber worms and slightly tarnished Little Cleo spoons from the same era.
They don’t get used much on the water anymore. But who can throw away old fishing tackle?
They still prove their value each winter when I break out the old tackle boxes and storage bins and sort through the items. The memories they evoke are priceless.
Chris Slusar of Evansville knows exactly where I’m coming from.
“I absolutely love taking inventory of my lures,” said Slusar, 54. “And I don’t know a fisherman that doesn’t have a ridiculous number of lures well beyond anything they can use.”
That’s a compliment, by the way. The fraternity of anglers encourages acquiring, keeping, cherishing and preserving fishing tackle. Sharing, too.
Slusar, in fact, has taken his hobby to a completely different level.
He got hooked on lure collecting when he was in his late teens and now spends much of his leisure time researching and collecting fishing tackle. His specialty is gear made in Wisconsin.
And once a year, he serves as a lure collecting ambassador when he hosts the Great Milwaukee Classic.
The 41st annual show, which allows the public to view as well as buy, sell and trade a vast assortment of fishing lures and other tackle, is scheduled for Jan. 14 and 15 in Brookfield. Free appraisals are also available.
The show is sponsored by the National Fishing Lure Collectors Club, the world’s largest organization dedicated to the pastime.
Fishing tackle is nearly as old as humankind. Hooks made from bone and wood are commonly found at archeological sites around the globe.
When fishing evolved from survival to recreation, the manufacture of gear increased markedly.
Most collectible items in circulation today were made from the 1800s on, Slusar said, with the vast majority dating from the 1930s to present.
A Milwaukee native, Slusar started fishing as a youngster in the 1970s. His lure collecting can be traced to the late ’70s when his uncle Joe took him on a musky fishing trip to the Chippewa Flowage.
It was there Slusar was introduced to Frenchy LeLures made by Vern “Frenchy” LeMay, a fishing guide and lure designer who worked out of Indian Trail Resort on the flowage.
“I was completely taken by the musky mystique and fascinated with those lures,” Slusar said. “That got me started and there was no looking back.”
As he began to dig into his new passion, Slusar found out about the National Fishing Lure Collectors Club, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering awareness of lure collecting.
Slusar joined the club in 1986 and is now a life member. He has hosted or co-hosted the Great Milwaukee Open for the last 20 years.
Learning the history of lures, especially those made in Wisconsin, has helped increase his appreciation for fishing and fisher people, Slusar said.
The story of one of the earliest patented wooden fishing lures – from Ashland – helps illustrate his point.
The bait was designed by Charles Dunbar (a painter) and David Huard (a cobbler) in the early 1870s.
It featured a wooden, minnow-shaped body with a spring hook that could be retracted or released. The basic intent was to keep the hook close to the body to make it relatively weedless on retrieve and then allow the hook to be more exposed when struck by a fish.
In 1874, when Ashland was a remote outpost in the northern forest reachable to most only by boat, Dunbar and Huard obtained a U.S. patent for the lure.
“It’s mind boggling to think that, about 150 years ago when Ashland was basically a wild west town, these two fishermen secured a patent for a lure,” Slusar said.
The lure didn’t bring the men fame or fortune.
But their work is etched forever in the rich history of lure making.
Over the last 150 years in Wisconsin, there has likely been at least one lure manufacturer in every city and town.
It’s sort of like breweries and bakeries. They’re signs of life.
Slusar can rattle off dozens of Wisconsin locations where collectible lures were made, including Antigo, Chetek, Fremont, Ladysmith, Land O’ Lakes, Maple, Medford, Packwaukee, Richland Center, Saynor, Two Rivers and West Bend.
The list goes on.
“It’s been very rewarding to learn about the past and the places and people who made these lures,” Slusar said. “The knowledge also translates to the collectibility of the items.”
Which brings us to another universal truth: Collecting can be a lifelong hobby.
“It’s endlessly educational and fun,” Slusar said. “There are a lot of unique stories out there and I just love to share them and learn about new ones.”