Ira D. Hudson and Family: Chincoteague Carvers

Ira D. Hudson and Family: Chincoteague Carvers by Henry Stansbury

If you are curious about the local decoy carvers on Chincoteague Island, Henry H. Stansbury’s Ira D. Hudson and Family is a good place to start your quest for information. First published in 2002 by Decoy Magazine, the book provides a history of the Hudson family of carvers as well as wonderful photographs of many of Hudson’s carvings. In his preface, Stansbury notes “The extraordinary body of work produced by the Hudson family of Chincoteague, Virginia in the first half of the 20th century will capture the attention of all who appreciate the finest of American Folk Art.”

Stansbury is a decoy collector as well as an historian, having received his first Hudson decoy as a Christmas gift in 1980. He immediately became enamored with Hudson’s work and, over the years, has become a recognized expert on Hudson’s carvings. He begins his biography of Hudson with his final Christmas, in December 1948, and works backward, with Hudson’s life story intertwined with stories about life on Chincoteague Island and about duck carving as craft and art. One section includes a price list for Hudson’s decoys from 1928, with many listed at $10-15 per dozen; in recent years, one of his Goose carvings sold for over $75,000! Although Ira D. Hudson is Chincoteague’s most famous carver, other members of the Hudson family have carried on the tradition and Stansbury includes short biographies of many members of the extended family and includes examples of their work.

Ira D. Hudson and Family is an interesting and entertaining introduction to the life of Chincoteague carvers. Their love of working with wood and of making something both useful and beautiful is a theme that runs throughout the book. For more information, click here.