Lee Dudley (NC, 1860-1942), Redhead

Knotts Island, North Carolina, circa 1900, carved and painted wood, branded TBW.

Length 13 in.

From the Collection of a Gentleman, Durham, North Carolina

From the hunting rig of Tilford Wade, guide at the Swan Island Club.

Lee Dudley decoys are perhaps the most coveted of all decoy makers. This redhead was last painted and hunted as a canvasback. Tilford Wade was a decoy picker for Bill Mackey, author of American Bird Decoys and a guide at the Swan Island Club on Knotts Island.

Old gunning paint with moderate wear, professional restoration by Frank Finney to the base of the neck and tip of the bill, please see provided X-Ray photograph.