A Decoy Corner Article
By Bruce Urben, WWA President
Pictured above: Mike Valley Gadwalls, photo courtesy John Fandrey Collection
Mike Valley: A Third-Generation Decoy Carver from Prairie du Chien, WI
Prairie du Chien is a historic city in Southwest Wisconsin and the second-oldest settlement, located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Wisconsin Rivers. It was settled in the late 17th century and began as a center for the fur trade but was also a destination for commercial fishing and waterfowl hunting. The Mississippi River is home to 100’s of thousands of migrating waterfowl each fall and is still a waterfowling hotbed.
Mike Valley is a third-generation decoy carver, waterfowl hunter, and commercial fisherman from Prairie du Chien. Mike was born in 1961 and grew up in Prairie du Chien, and his family’s long carving tradition dates back to the depression era. Mike’s grandfather began carving 3 dozen decoys for his own use during the 1920s, with his grandmother assisting in painting them. Mike’s father, Dallas, started carving decoys in the 1950s and continued actively carving over 10,000 decoys into the 1990s until his death several years ago. As you can see, Mike had direct exposure to the decoy-carving craft from childhood, shaping both his skills and his commitment to the tradition.
Mike worked as a commercial fisherman and owned the Valley Fish and Cheese store in Prairie du Chien. When he wasn’t fishing or minding the store, he was carving decoys and finding time to waterfowl hunt each fall.
As expected, Mike began carving early in his childhood, carving both traditional hunting decoys and decorative ducks and geese, following his grandfather and father’s tradition. He has carved most duck species, including pintails, black ducks, mallards, teal, geese, swans, songbirds, owls, crows, and even a Bald Eagle!
Mike uses basswood for the body of his decoys and often adds a hardwood bill for durability and detail. His carvings have also included natural materials like turtle shell for unique one-of-a-kind sculptures.
Mike finishes his decoys with artist oil paint. His painting includes amazing feather detail and scratch painting. His decoys blend traditional decoy carving with distinctive accents that give his work both authenticity and character of the species he represents.
Mike rarely uses a pattern for his decoys as he carves freehand, so every decoy is different in posture and appearance. He cuts and dries his own wood and produces a limited number of highly collectible working decoys rather than mass-produced pieces. It is not uncommon to see Mike Valley’s decoys sell for over $ 1,000 a pair and, of course, are highly regarded by Wisconsin collectors.
While Mike has recently closed his Fish and Cheese store on Prairie Street and retired from commercial fishing, his old building has since been used for new ventures, such as River Valley Art Gallery!
There is no mistaking a Mike Valley decoy, as each one is signed “Valley” on the bottom.
We certainly miss the Valley smoked fish at local decoy shows along with his other exotic offerings.
If not carving, I am sure you will find Mike in the marsh each fall or at one of the vintage decoy shows in Wisconsin and Illinois.
Mike Valley, a Wisconsin original, third-generation decoy carver and artist, is still at it in Prairie du Chien, WI!
