Ted John Thyrion – Green Bay Decoy Carver and Bay Gunner

A Decoy Corner Article

By Bruce Urben, WWA President

Ted Thyrion was born in June of 1911 in Green Bay, Wisconsin and lived there his entire life. Ted had eight younger siblings, five sisters and three brothers. At least one brother was also a decoy carver and waterfowler.

At age of 14, Ted worked as a commercial fisherman on the Bay of Green Bay. He saw firsthand the bounty of the Bay with its abundant waterfowl and fish resources. After 10 years as a fisherman he became a stevedore, unloading docked ships in Green Bay. Ted married in 1934 and started his career at Fort Howard Paper Co. in Green Bay, where he retired in 1976!

As a young man, Ted began his passion of waterfowling, which continued until his death. He hunted the Bay of Green Bay, which generally included Peats Lake on the west shore and it also included hunting the Fox River where it emptied into the Bay. His regular hunting partner was Milton Geyer and his cousin, George Thyrion. Both of these men were great decoy carvers in their own rights!

Ted began decoy carving to serve his duck hunting needs. Money was short in the early 1920’s and providing for his family took precedence over purchasing commercial decoys. According to research, Ted carved several hundred decoys in his lifetime. He sold few to sportsmen, but gifted many to his friends and hunting associates. Ted carved bluebill, bufflehead, teal, canvasback and coots. His decoys were not oversized but representative of the species. They were solid bodied wood decoys with exceptional bill carving and secondary feather carving. He painted with oils and his feather painting had excellent shading and blending. He used glass eyes in all of his decoys.

Ted’s love for the big water in the Bay extended to all the animals, wildfowl and fish in the ecosystem. Today he would be classified as a “conservationist”. He was a member of Ducks Unlimited, started the Green Bay “Duck Pluckers” Club and was a founding member of the Green Bay Duck Hunters Association.

Ted was proud of his accomplishments, but none more than his family and conserving the rich resources in the Bay of Green Bay. Ted passed away in March of 2012 at the age of 100!

Today, Ted Thyrion’s decoys are highly regarded and collected by Wisconsin Collectors. Many become available on the secondary auction market as well as flea markets and garage sales in the GreenB ay area. I have seen his decoys sell for several hundred dollars in good condition. I believe Ted would be amazed at the value of his decoys in 2023!

I am fortunate to say I have a great example of Ted’s decoy carving in my collection now for several years.  A drake bluebill in the true Green Bay style. Yes, I wish he could tell me how it was back in 1932 when he was carved!

 

More to come on several more Green Bay decoy carvers and their legacy to Wisconsin Waterfowling in upcoming Decoy Corner articles.