O-O-OH! BOB SOLD HIS FISHING LURE!

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THAT FIFTY-NINE CENT LURE FROM MONTGOMERY WARD
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(Mil's Note: Here's a new tale from "Country Boy Bob," presented with pleasure.)

As a young boy I was crazy about fishing. I really don't know why---my Dad did not fish and I didn't have the opportunity to go fishing and I didn't have any equipment. I remember the first rod that I bought---it was one of those solid steel rods---stiff as a board but it did have those nice little red glass guides.

I remember poking around at Montgomery Ward, down on Main street, when I was about eleven or twelve years old, looking at their fishing lures. They had a variety of lures but there was one that caught my eye. It was a bass lure, top-water plug and it was designed to imitate a bird which had fallen into the water. After much thought, I purchased that lure. I am not sure but I think the price was fifty-nine cents! It was a big decision because my family did not have a lot of money and I earned my money mowing lawns with a push mower for 50 and 75 cents a yard.

Now here I was with a bass lure and not a chance to go fishing. Of course I placed it in a box and later a tackle box and for about 57 years I toted that lure around and never used it---not one single time. When I was about seventy years old and doing a little buying and selling online, I decided to list that lure at auction on EBay

I wrote it up and it was listed as: "never used, purchased about 1947, very unusual top-water plug, no name on it but it was rare, in that it had real bird feathers tied and glued to the brown painted all-wood body." As I remember, I put an opening bid price of $4.95 on it.

It was a seven-day auction and by the fifth or sixth day the bid had gone up to $20-$25.  I knew that fishing lures were doing pretty good on EBay but most of the high price ones were old wood Heddons or South Bends. I waited with anticipation; toward the end the bidding became a FRENZY! I was floored! That fifty-nine cent lure sold for-------$92.00!!! I was astonished. I was pleased.

I enjoyed it but there again---- I had just sold a piece of my legacy for $92.00!
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About "Country Boy" Bob, he is a  successful businessman, retired, who then dabbled just for fun in buying and selling "Junque" as a hobby. (I think he enjoyed it!) Thanks Bob, for your stories!
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BY BOB SNIPES and MIL
8/21/12
Sent from my iPad