The L'Anse sentinel., 1924-02-22
The INDUSTRY BACK
Of YOUR SPORT

rivers and streams connecting them.
There are immence areas Of woods
In Michigan and Wisconsin which are
still the habitat Of wild game ami
mails. The lakes and the connecting
streams spell "fish" to thousands Of
Michigan citizens. The woods spell
Hunting"
Once the average Yankee becomes
devotee to either he proceeds to
load up on shootin' irons and fishing
gear. And such a variety Of traps
as he gets together! For common
folk the bamboo rod and the timber
"popple" or willow branch suffice, but
for the airy "bird" who wants folks
to know he is a real sherman, one
must bring on the subsection bamboo
or the steel rod, the multiplying reel,
and the barbless or weedless hook,
besides full assortment Of flies for
the wary trout, and artificial bait Of
many sizes and many styles for all
other kinds Of fish. There is choice
in lines, too, varying through silk
and linen, vanished and unvarnish-
cd, tapered and straight.
For thc hunter and the outdoors
man, generally an everlasting lot Of
appliances and equipment is provided
covering the entire category that lies
between the cheapest frog spear and
the portable camping house with
which one converts his automobile
into outdoors sleeping quarters.
Most people who pay attention to
these things do not recall that there
are industries back Of all these.
Michigan, rather pre-eminently
among the states, is manufacturer
of outdoors sport supplies. For in
stance, the most famous artificial
bait used bears the name of Mich
igan town, Dowagiac, where most of
it is made. Shakespeare reels and
rods from Kalamazoo have been ia
nous for generations. Marbles
woodsman's goods have created an
industry at Gladstone. There is an
old fellow at Grand Rapids who ties
trout flies for Stevens COM
pany's customers. There used to be a
man in the midle of the state who
advertised that he whitfield out Sec
ond growth hickory fishing rods. A
large share of the wooden decoys used
by duck hunters in the marshes of
the country are made in a Detroit
factory. The silk factory at Belding
turns out braided fishing lines.
All told, survey shows that the
sporting goods industry in Michigan
employs over twelve hundred people
and produces every year better than
$4,OO0,000 worth of product. These
are not new industries by a good
deal.
James Heddon founded the industry
in Dowagiac many years ago, and his
sons have succeeded to it. Charles
Heddon, his son, still has the first
wooden fish bait that he ever heard of.
1t was produced by, his great-grand-
father, William Tuttle, who used it
eigfhty years ago trolling for bass
and pickerel on Magician lake, ten
miles from Dowagiac.
So extensive is the industry now
adays. that the Heddon company
alone cuts up foru or five carloals Of
lumber a year to supply wooden
bats. This company is the largest in
MICHIGAN manufacturing artificial
wooden bait lures and Of high grade
split bamboo fish casting rods and
reels. The raw materials
for these are assembled from various
parts of the world. The bamboo for
Heddon rods is imported directc from
China, and the agates and jewels used
in the production Of rods and reels
are imported direct from Germany
and Austria. All Of the hooks used on
the Hedon bats are secured in Eng
land and Sweden.
Over $50 persons are employed In
the Dowagiac factory and its pro-
ductions, after covering practically all
of the United States, are sent in
quite important quantities to Europe
and Australia. This number is
eoualled by the Shakespeare factory
at Kalamazoo, which makes practi-
cally the same lines Of goods and dis
tributes them worldwide.
At the other end Of the state a
very important industry has grown
up along the SAME lires, with the
exception that it's production Is very
largely hunting equipment The
Marble Arms & Manufacturing COM
pany, located at Gladstone, is already
years old. 1t was found
ed By Webster Marble. who, with his
father, Lansing Marble, went up
from vassar to the northwestern part
Of the state In the B0's, both father