The history of Long Island duck hunting is well documented. From the early 1840’s until the end of market hunting in 1918, gunners supplied their own table and that of the fancy restaurants in New York City with fresh game birds. Commercial hunting gave way to the era of the sportsmen who came to the south shore of Long Island to shoot ducks and snipe in season. Hunting clubs offered employment to local hunters who carved decoys and served as guides to the “gentlemen hunters” drawn to the area.
Charles Howell was an active carver in the early decades of the 20th century (c. 1900-1920) who is recalled as a “master of the trade. II A contemporary of George B. Robert (dates unknown), Howell is credited with a number of flat-bottomed black duck decoys made from cork.
For additional information
Gunners Paradise: Wildfowling and Decoys of Long Island, 1979 by Jane E. Townsend.
Old Time Duck Hunting On Long Island (date unknown) by Van Field.