This famous gun maker from New Haven, Conn., manufactured quality fishing tackle for a few years during the late teens and early 1920s. The Underwater Minnows featured a distinct rear propeller. This finish is referred to as "parrot" among collectors. 

Active briefly in the early teens, Albert Winnie of Traverse City, Mich., is known for his bulbous, double-lipped bass baits. Winnie was a barber, and no doubt had plenty of time to discuss fishing. This early tackle maker painted most of his colorful baits himself.  These lures have brass eyes.  

Here is a second box style - with interesting "cartoon" papers dated 1914 and several "pending" patents dated 1915. Note the fine stencil on the lure's back and the abundant patent information on both ends of the box. This mint-in-box bait was acquired from a visitor to this website.   

The Expert lures date to the pre-teen years and have wonderful milky eyes, unsual hooks and long gills. The Woods Expert, made in  Alliance, Ohio, around 1903 or 1904. Note the holes in the propellers.

 Little is known about the early cork and rubber Wilson's Floating Frog  manufactured in the 30s by M.E. Wilson of Warwick, N.Y.  Note the folky hand-painted finish and onyx-like bead eyes. This unusually tall box says Wilson patented his frog Jan. 8, 1935.  This elegant hopper was gratefully acquired from a visitor to this website.

 Here is another version of M.E. Wilson's Floating Frog. This one has a single hook in the belly and a treble at the tail. No two of these baits are ever identical.  The Wilson Floating Frog was patented Jan. 2, 1935 and M.E. Wilson was from Warwick, New York.

 These no-eyed wooden lures were sold regionally in the early 1930s around Montpelier, Ohio, where J.W. Whitney worked and lived. This is yet another of the speckled or spotted plunking type lures that tend to turn up in this region.  Others included the Speckled Tipper.

This Denver, Colorado company was in business from around 1925 on through the 1960s. The composition material early lures such as this baby Crawdad featured glass eyes, rubber legs and lifelike silken antennas. 

This lifelike looking mouse has glass bead eyes and wire whiskers. The orange box is typical  Wright & McGill baits of the early to late 1930s. This is the small version of the Swimming Mouse; a larger size was made for  pike.  All the ones I have seen are in this dark, mouse-like finish.

This larger version of the Crawdad includes a cardboard form in the box bottom with instructions for fishing this colorful bait, which must have been quite fragile. These date to the 1930s.

the Zinc Screwtail was a bizarre little plug with a metal diving lip, a corkscrew body and aluminum hardware. It also had wire weedless guards. Made in Dixon, Illinois, this bait dates to the mid-1940s and is an unusual miscellaneous.