Vintage "Glowurm" Lure...

[JoeW]

Oliver and Gruber “Glowurm” Lure

On May 16, 1918, Alfred Oliver and James Gruber filed a patent for the first triple jointed lure. This patent was granted November 23, 1920. Oliver and Gruber immediately went into production of the lure they decided to call The Glowurm Lure. It was advertised nationally in Outdoor Life magazine, with ads appearing from 1921 through 1923.

Construction & painting had to be simple because these lures were being manufactured by patients at a Medical Lake, Washington Psychiatric Center (near Spokane). Yes, the mental patients of the hospital were turning out the wooden bodies and painting the Glowurm as therapy!

Oliver and Gruber worked at the hospital and also were avid bass fishermen. They saw the chance to help the patients with therapy, AND to help finance their fishing hobby with some cash from the sales of their lure invention. The only problem came when the directors of the hospital discovered the lures were being sold nationally and the hospital wasn’t sharing in on the profits!

The Medical Lake Hospital Board of Directors delivered an ultimatum to the doctor/entrepreneurs; cease and desist with the production of the Glowurm, and everything would be forgotten. Otherwise, they would face charges for using illegal labor and face termination. Oliver and Gruber decided that doctoring was more important than lure making, so they went out of the lure business.

(Heddon later bought the patent rights and came out with their own version of the lure called a “Gamefisher”.) Best---- JoeW :)

Every old lure has a story to tell!

[fatworm]

Very interesting! Medical Lake is about a half-hour drive from my place. Cool!


You need to make this your signature "Every old lure has a story to tell!"

[JoeW]

Forgot to mention- these Glowurms originally came in a hinged wooden box that was hollowed out and grooved to hold the lure and hooks securely. The box is worth more to collectors than is the lure!

And just for you Fatworm-- A few years ago, a whole bunch of these hit the collector's market. They were selling for $200 with the box and about $100 without the box. The "story" is that someone in Medical Lake picked up a big box full of the unsold inventory of Glowurms at an auction or garage sale. Over 100 lures/boxes! That was a pretty hefty "find". Look around- those old lures are still out there, waiting to be found! Best--- JoeW ;)

[fatworm]

Forgot to mention- these Glowurms originally came in a hinged wooden box that was hollowed out and grooved to hold the lure and hooks securely. The box is worth more to collectors than is the lure!

And just for you Fatworm-- A few years ago, a whole bunch of these hit the collector's market. They were selling for $200 with the box and about $100 without the box. The "story" is that someone in Medical Lake picked up a big box full of the unsold inventory of Glowurms at an auction or garage sale. Over 100 lures/boxes! That was a pretty hefty "find". Look around- those old lures are still out there, waiting to be found! Best--- JoeW ;)

Now this is getting even more interesting! You think these lures would've been split up by now? One just may never know where they could have went. Might even be buried in someones attic right now!

[JoeW]

For several weeks after the person made his "find" at the auction/flea market, the online auction sites and collector's sites were flooded with Glowurms for sale. That's where/when I got my example. Now that theyre gone, they're tough to find again, but for awhile- anyone that wanted one could get it. Just an example of the ups and downs of collecting old tackle. And yes- I KNOW there must be places where boxes of old tackle inventories are just gathering dust, waiting to be discovered! Makes it exciting! Best--- JoeW

[RAK]

Very interesting! I bet the patients became experts on lathe turning.

[JoeW]

I'm not certain that the patients actually did the lathe work. But I understand the wood body parts were painted by first dipping them in white paint, letting it dry, then pouring out red paint onto a table top and letting the patients roll the white bodies in the thin layer of red! Neat way to paint the stripes on the grooved body- quick and easy! They are also found in Green stripes on white. Man, the stories told by some of these old baits! Best---- JoeW

[lip ripper]

Now that is a story. It sounded good until they got shut down lol. Weird looking lure though.