January 2012
The Allure
W D Chapman & Son
Theresa, NY
1884
Before the invention of the “rubber worm” lure….before plastic lures existed…even before wooden fishing lures existed…there were lures on the market made by William D. Chapman.
Chapman was born in 1820 in Theresa, NY. In 1844, he married and the couple had 6 children, although not all their children lived to adults (which, sadly, was common in the 19th century). Chapman was a carpenter, but found he had a natural ability for working on mechanical devices, and thus became an inventor and a jeweler. Watch repair was a delicate craft, and Chapman was good at it.
William Chapman had several patents including a bird cage spring, printing press patents, and one for a reverse motion display case which he used in his jewelry business. In 1866, he was awarding his first fishing tackle patent.
When Chapman began making fishing lures, his main business was still jewelry. However, in the 1870s this started to change. Was it due to his detailed craftsmanship in everything he did, including his lures? Or was it the feedback he got from his horse-drawn wagon salesman who were in the field meeting with customers? Whatever the reason, Chapman soon became an extensive manufacturer of fishing lures and began to apply for patents on over 20 items for fishing.
In the early 1880s, his son Byron joined the lure making business and the company name was changed to “Chapman and Son”. Business was booming and his lures were in high demand.
Then, a few setbacks struck the business. In 1890, a large fire destroyed 42 buildings in the area, including his manufacturing building and all of its contents. After the fire, his business moved to Rochester, NY and due to the loss and new investments, the business was suffereing finacially. Then, his son that joined the business passed away in 1895. Eventually the business was taken over by Gibson and Woodworth.
W D Chapman passed away in 1909, not knowing that someday his lures would be prized among modern day collectors for their unique craftsmanship.
The small Chapman lure that I am featuring this month is called the “Allure”, a clever name for a fishing lure. This lure was patented in 1884 and has the name of “Chapman and Son” on the blade. This lure was produced right around the time his son joined the company.
I found this lure in a tackle box many years ago as a teenager. I didn’t know anything about Chapman at the time, let alone lure collecting, and used this fishing. I can attest from firsthand experience, this lure works well and does catch the fish. Chapman was a lure manufacturing pioneer and giant of lure patents. While W D Chapman is not a household name among inventors, such as Edison and Bell, his name is well known in the lure collecting community.
