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80 years ago

On the night of 18 to 19 December the 101st Airborne Division was jammed into trucks and rushed into battle, destination Bastogne Belgium. On the morning of the 19th the 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment marched north and east from Bastogne towards the road from the town of Foy and Bizory in a place called Bois Jacques or Jack’s Forrest.

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Baby it’s Cold Outside……

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Field guns are generally not aesthetically pleasing, but day in and day out, in all conditions, they get the job done. 1 degree in Wisconsin and a Benelli that I have used like a crow bar for over two decades is still getting the job done.

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On point

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Mr and Mrs Mason of the Canvasback variety, made in Detroit, Michigan late 1890s early 1900s. Wisconsin hunters, especially in the Winnebago area copied this Mason model extensively as they were easy to see on big water. The “high neck, Wisconsin Canvasback” used to be found by the gunny sack load in old boathouses all over east central Wisconsin. From the late 60s through the 90s, those interested in sporting/hunting art, pickers, antique dealers and folk art collectors participated in a rush to locate old decoys especially by known carvers and companies (such as Mason). These decoys were initially bartered at shows, traded amongst each other, and sold outright. By the time Ebay arrived on the scene, the heyday of finding these old treasures were largely over. Online markets served as a means to disperse the others which occasionally surface. Currently, auction houses are selling the collections of many of the original enthusiasts as time moves on.

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1920s Wisconsin

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“I am the 82 Airborne and this is as far as the bastards are going to get”…….On December 17, 1944 units of the 82nd Airborne were deployed to stop the surprise German counter attack which became known as “The Battle of the Bulge”. Taking advantage of the winter weather and targeting a weakness in the American lines, German forces smashed through and were on the verge of routing American forces and rolling back hard fought allied gains when the 101st and 82nd along with other tested units joined the fray, first slowing, then stopping the advance. When I was younger I knew people who were with the 82nd and 101st and fought in this battle. Thank you.

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Canvasback decoys from the Lakeside Inn, Lake Koshkonong, WI 1890s-1900s

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Lake Koshkonong WI 1890s

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