Sam Barnes

In 1924, the "Second Annual Exhibition of Wildfowl Decoys by American Sportsmen" was held at the Winchester Sportsman's Headquarters in New York. The "Best of Show", based on the practical use and maintenance of decoys, was awarded to Sam Barnes of Havre de Grace, MD for his pair of canvasback decoys. With this distinction, Barnes' place in decoy fame was forever secured.

By the late 1800's Havre de Grace had firmly established itself as a mecca for duck hunters. The Barnes' family were commercial duck hunters and fishermen. Sam's father, William F, and older brother (also named William) were listed in the 1880 Havre de Grace City Directory as "Duck shooters". In the formal Federal census of that same year, however, they, as well as Samual, are recorded as carpenters. In 1885, Sam bought his family home on Washington St from his father and, in 1886, married Sarah K ("Sadie") Gilbert (some records list the marriage as 1885). By the time of the 1900 census, Sam was listing his occupation as "fisherman" and, by 1910, "boat builder". By 1920, he had returned to earning a living as a "house carpenter". Over the years, he and Sadie had 7 children.

Research by Michael Daley indicates that between the years of 1891 and 1920, Sam was active in the pursuit of the plentiful local waterfowl, purchasing a long array of Harford County gunning licenses as well as numerous sinkbox and sneakboat licenses. He purchased his last gunning license the year before his death.

Coming from a family steeped in the traditions of the Susquehanna Flats, and with a strong carpentry and boat building background, it should come as no surprise that Sam would turn to decoy production, both for his own use, and as a means to help support his large family. He realized that to be effective, his decoys needed to be both attractive to the ducks as well as practical, sturdy, and functional for the many hunters of the day. His lifelong production can only be estimated, but the consensus is that it probably comfortably numbered in the thousands of decoys. Most of these were for the species usually found on the Flats, canvasback, redheads, bluebills and a few geese. In 1890, however, he produced a small group of swans that are universally considered his crowning achievements.

Samuel T. Barnes was born in 1851(57?) in Havre de Grace. He was a fisherman, guide, and market hunter who produced decoys for his own hunting needs.