Ken Anger 1905-1961 | Dunnville Ontario Ken lived in Dunnville on the banks of the Grand River a few miles north of where it enters the north shore of Lake Erie at Port Maitland Ontario. Dunnville with its river, marshes and proximity to Hamilton Bay to the N.E. and Long Point Bay to the S.W. was an area where quality decoys were in demand. Ken was an avid fisherman and hunter; duck and woodcock hunting with his cocker spaniels was his passion. Ken became a commercial decoy maker in the late 1930’s. As with most prolific carvers, his styles changed quite dramatically between the 1930’s until his death in 1961. Dunnville’s other internationally renowned carver Peter Marshall Pringle (1878-1953) is said to have influenced Ken’s work, particularly his use of heavy texturing with the wood rasp. Ken entered the “National Decoy Contest” in New York USA in 1948 and again in 1949 taking multiple first place Blue Ribbons each year. American sportsmen and collectors had found Dunnville’s Ken Anger. The international demand for Anger decoys continues to this day. In addition to his gunning Blacks, Mallards, Redheads, Canvasbacks, Bluebills, Whistlers, Buffleheads, Teal and Pintails, collectors were now commissioning decorative species – Wood Duck, Shovellers, Mergansers and Old Squaw (Long Tailed Duck). Ken made several thousand gunning decoys for local sportsmen from Dunnville, Long Point, Hamilton Bay, Niagara and Buffalo areas. As his fame spread, his distribution area increased especially for his decorative work in the mid 1950’s until his death. Several extremely rare or one-of-a-kind decoys including Shovellers and Red Breasted Merganser decoys are
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Shovelers
Bluewing Teal
Greenwing Teal
Buffleheads