Horace Ball and Charles Varney founded the Moonlight Bait Company in Paw Paw, Michigan in 1908, selling handmade wooden lures (shaped, painted, and hooked to catch the biggest fish). Since they didn't have time to fish during the day, most of their lures glowed for better visibility at night. Some still even glow today. Product lines included 'Floating Bait,' 'Zig-Zag,' 'Wiggler,' and 'Dreadnaught.' The company was bought by the Paw Paw Bait company around 1928, and expanded into fly fishing lures. Look for lures in their original packaging, and be careful of imitations.
Interviews & Articles
The Fun and Artistry of Antique Fishing Lures

I grew up fishing. And I always had a few old lures – several came from my grandfather – and I just decided one day that they were… [more]
Trends in Fishing Tackle Collecting

I’ve been a collector of antique fishing tackle for over 20 years, and have been selling antique tackle in my shop since 1990. I c… [more]
Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)
Joes Old Lures

Joe Yates' website is a great showcase for hundreds of old fishing lures, providing high resolution photos and in m… [read review or visit site]
Mrlurebox.com

Take a big bite - you won't want to just nibble at Robbie Pavey's gallery of over 300 antique fishing lures, many w… [read review or visit site]
AntiqueLures.com

This extensive site features over 500 pages of information on pre-1940 wood fishing lures and lure boxes. Start wit… [read review or visit site]
Bob Vermillion's Fishing Tackle Web Site

Bob Vermillion started collecting lures at age 16, and has created a site dedicated to his love for Frank Knill 'Ve… [read review or visit site]
Oldfishinglure.com

This site is sure to snag you with its great collection of fishing lures from the early 1900s. Includes lures from … [read review or visit site]
TackleCollecting.com

Larry Nicholson's site dedicated to vintage fishing lures. Features beautiful images of lures and boxes from Fred A… [read review or visit site]
Clubs & Associations
- National Fishing Lure Collectors Club
- Florida Antique Tackle Collectors
- Carolina Antique Tackle Collectors
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World's Smallest Museum Finds the Wonder in Everyday Objects
Fightin’ Femmes: Unmasking Female Superheroes with Author Mike Madrid

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