Feature Story
Buried Treasure
M
y grandfather was not a fisherman, more of a trader. He picked up items back in the 1950's and 1960's that most walked past.
For example, in 1961 he bought a race car without the engine or transmission. I was about eight and had a great time steering that car around the yard while dad pushed. He later sold the car like was the fate of all the interesting things he bought. Years later, I found an exact photo of the car that was a 1930's racer. That body with wheels would be worth a fortune now. On another trading trip, grandpa brought home a tackle box he had traded something for in 1965. That, of course, went to me, the family's fisherman. The box was full of old lures and plastic boxes of hooks, weights and bobbers.
52
CONSERVATION FEDERATION
I was elated and made sure to hide the box before it was traded for some other treasure. I closely surveyed the tacklebox's contents at home and found several interesting items, mostly old wooden lures. But one was different and absolutely unique. I picked it up and studied a real fish mummified in layers of plastic. The lure had a nylon leader out of its mouth and a beaded treble hook from out of its anal cavity. I put that lure in a special box and forgot about it. Years later, the unique lure turned up and I decided to do some research. By then we had the internet and lots of lure collector sites. I indeed found my lure and its history.
