Leroy Howell (1898-1988) Hinkley, MN 5.125" long | .5" wide | 1.125" tall Natural wood face with pencil gills on a red painted body. Body and fins are covered in 30 white and red dots with numerous "flower" and dot patterns on the white belly "Leroy Howell created stylized rather than realistic fish decoys, and often decorated them with painted lines, dots, and flowers. He trained as a housepainter and originally carved decoys just for personal use. His work became popular with other fishermen, however, and he traveled around Minnesota taking orders for decoys before the start of the spearing season" (Kimball, The Fish Decoy, vol. I, 1986) Condition: Very good and original with even tarnish across the fins and some marks on the face. Provenance: Private Midwest Collection Tim Spreck Collection