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Rick
and Len Hornick started out carving and painting decoys
in their garage in Glen Burnie, Md.
In
1972, they decided to build their own factory.
They
purchased land on U.S. Route 13 on the Eastern Shore
of Virginia, which was strategically located in the
heart of the Atlantic migratory fly zone.
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In
time, the 34,000 sq. ft. facility became the
World's largest decoy factory. Len Hornick was
the carver, while Raymond, or "Rick" was the
painter. Their mother Mary was the business manager.
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Left:
Stoney Point Decoy's last catalog.
In
the early 1980's Stoney Point Decoys was at the forefront
of its industry. Hundreds of duck decoys were made
each hour; thousands a day; up to 4 million each year.
Stoney
Point decoys have been featured in the L.L. Bean catalog,
Ducks Unlimited, and the Orvis catalog, among others.
They've
adorned homes and businesses around the world.
In
the late 1980s, due to internal conflicts, the
company went through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
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In
2002, Stoney Point Decoys made only 5,000 pieces. In
2003, it was decided that the Stoney Point machines
- some of them 60 years old, could not compete with
the newer, more advanced, and faster computer-guided
methods.
With
new equipment and machines, Stoney Point might have been
able to stay in business. They had enough orders. But the
company that purchased the factory in the late 1980's didn't
invest heavily enough to update all of the equipment necessary
to compete with other manufacturers.
So
in June of 2003, the Stoney Point Decoy Factory finished
it's last decoy, marking the end of an era.
