Vernon Rider played a significant role in the
preservation of Jack Rider's legacy. See, Vernon was Jack's son and
most of all of the later (1950's - 1960's) photos obtained of Rider
almost always included Vernon in the images. It is safe to assume that
Vernon and his father were both avid duck hunters and out of the same
mold. I thought it best to start at the at the latest part of Vernon's
life and work backwards to better explain Vernon's role in the Jack
Rider story.
Vernon setup at the 1983 ODCCA (Ohio Decoy Collector
and Carver Association) show. This is significant because this was in
March of 1983. Vernon would later pass away in July (28th) of that
same year. This would mark the end of an era. Little did anyone know
that Vernon's push to show the collecting world the true appeal of
Jack's birds would ultimately help the birds gain notoriety in later
years. Vernon made several trips to different decoy shows and he took
one of Jack's prized Goose decoys to Point Mouilee in 1979 and actually
entered the bird into the carving competition! Remember, Jack had
passed away in 1967 and most of the birds in the competition were less
than 3 months old. There will be a later discussion on that bird and
where it placed....
As you can see in the photograph, Vernon had brought in Jack's working
birds. You may also notice that not all of the decoys are Rider
birds. The Canvasback in the foreground and the one in the background
were certainly a great Jack Rider examples while the Coot was from the Mason Decoy factory.
Vernon's commitment to his father's legacy was truly
evident, but who noticed? Many of the dealers and collectors noted
that Vernon was pushing his dad's birds but no one seemed to be
breaking down the doors to buy them. This was because Vernon played
the role of being the initial "salesman" and historian of his father's
birds. We are not sure but he may of also thought that the other birds
on that table (above) were his father's as well, who knows? One thing
is for sure, Vernon's tenacity to show his father's talent was evident
in his later years and he played an almost equal role in the Jack Rider
legacy.
Look for more Vernon information as we move backwards into the life and legacy of Jack Rider.
