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Taxidermy in America

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Mr Elmer Oxley

Mr Elmer Oxley 1902 - 1991, in memoriam.

My Grandfather was a photogrpher and my Dad and uncle, Elmer, followed in his footsteps becoming phographers also until the late 1960s. My Grandfather started in 1899. My whole family was and now my sons and I into hunting, fishing, traping and anything to do with outdoors as now my sons and I also are.
I've been fortunate that every time they went out they always had a couple camera with them to record thier trips so I've ended up with all the pictures and negs, thousands, so I can enjoy a long past history of their lives. Elmer got into taxidermy around 1916 when he was 14 years old. His first attempt was a squirrel which he said was a disaster. He bought a taxidermy book thru a magazine for 1 dollar, which I still have , and taught himselt how to do it right. I can remember as a kid watching him down his basement skinning, scapping, using needles to get feathers to lay perfedct and all the other things to really intrige a kid. In the late 1920s he started to dabble in painting wildlife which he enjoyed but only for himself, never selling any. I remember when someone wanted to buy one he said if he sold it he wouldn't have it to enjoy anymore. He stated to put mounting in case in the mid 1920s after he'd seen some mounting being eaten by insect and ect. Thats when he stared to sprinkle the skins with arsenic to make sure nothing would ever get to them, and nothing has. He had a reputation as a real perfectionist but not a real fast turnaround but people thought it was worth the wait.

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Late Cans by Elmer Oxley a small brochure of his paintings. Late cans the canvasback duck is a late migrator compared to most ducks we have go through Minnesota in the fall so Late Cans means it's late in the season like the end of October or into nov maybe after our first freeze. they can take the cold weather better than most other ducks so they wait for Mother Nature to really give them a boost of cold air along with goldeneyes and ringbills(bluebills) to leave their nesting grounds in Canada. Minnesota seansons are generally end of Sep to mid Nov. There is nothing like a flock of Cans going over your decoys, if you don't see them sneak up on you you hear them, (beat of their wings) they are one of the fastest flying ducks.
All the pictures of cases I'm sending are from 1925 to 1942. ( the two white owls were brought in by a farmer who shot them , they were stealing his chicken in 1926. I have a lot of pictures of him mounting his fish and birds also. can't locate that box of pctures right now though. This small brochure of his painting(late cans) was a print my dad had made up in 1982, so that picture of Elmer is 24 years ago. Elmer died in 1991 at nursing home on a lake he'd cought probably thousands of fish over his life time so was a fitting place where he passed away. I grew up next door to Elmer so he was like a second father and second home. Rich Oxley

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