Ferdinand Bach (1888-1967) was a Swiss-American carver of wooden duck decoys and is considered one of the most distinguished carvers of decoys in the US.[1]
He was born in Eschenz in Switzerland and emigrated in 1916 to the USA. He settled in St. Clair Shores where he worked as a craftsman and designer for auto manufacturing.[1] He is best known for his wooden duck decoys; he carved about 75 decoys between 1916 and 1930, and after they were destroyed in a fire, he created another 47 decoys between 1942 and 1951. He never sold any decoys and only used them "for his own pleasure".[1] The decoys are made of solid cedar and are wide with elaborate carving on the wings and the bills,[1] and were carved by hand out of telephone poles.[2]
Bach died in a boating accident in 1967.[1]