Creek Chub / Shur-Strike Rarities

Below is a small sampling of the many rarities to be found among the
myriad CCBCo lures, boxes, ephemera & other products offered by Creek Chub Bait Co.,
one of the “Big 5” lure companies.

GIANT MUSKY DARTER

At 5 ½”, much larger than the other
non-catalog Musky Darter.
Approximately TWELVE examples of this bait are reported to exist.
This one is Blue Flash.
Shown with a #2001 Darter for size comparison.

ALW DISPLAY PIKIE

Apparently given to sporting goods stores as a display piece.
Reportedly made in Garrett, IN but used in the Canadian market due to the
“ALW” (Allcock, Laight & Westwood) decal still affixed to the lip. Over 17” long!

C.1950 CREEK CHUB DISPLAY

Carried to major sporting goods conventions in order show the latest line of available baits.
Each lure is attached with thread to a velvet covered board.
Next to each lure is a sticker listing the CCBCo series/color code.

Shur-Strike’s “Triple Threat Lure” Box

The same box was also used to sell 3 CCBCo baits.
It exhibited a different label entitled “The Tantalizin’ Trio”.

CCBCo Line Spool

One of only two that I have encountered; both with the same label: “Black Chub, No.2”.
There were several other variations offered long ago by Creek Chub.

Creek Chub Marked Rod

Surely not produced by CCBCo but offered in some of their earlier catalogs.
Marked in part “….Creek Chub/ The Creek Chub Bait Co./ Garrett, Ind.”
Only a few rods are known.
Most advanced collectors haven’t seen an example.

Creek Chub Company Picnic Ribbon

One of the few known ribbons from their annual employee picnic.
This one is from the fifth event in 1923.
Personal collectibles such as this prove rarity doesn’t always equate into great value.

1923 CCBCo Store Counter Top Sign

This rare sign is very similar to the cover of the 1923 Creek Chub catalog.
The artist who designed the cover simply deleted part of the text at the bottom of his catalog rendering and replaced it with a likeness of a Polly Wiggle and a Flat Side Chub (Injured Minnow)
plus the names of these two lures. “New Ones” was entered below the bait illustrations.
This modification of the 1923 catalog cover art and the two lure illustrations listed as “New Ones”  (which were also first offered in 1923), confirms the production date of this counter sign.
The back of the sign has a cardboard easel and a label added by the maker of the sign.
The printer was in Ft. Wayne, not far from Garrett, Indiana. The printing process was patented in 1918.
If this sign is viewed at an angle one will notice the oil colors are layered over each other. Apparently, the colors were applied one at a time similar to stone lithography.  Evidently, this was an expensive process because Creek Chub eventually had their signs printed by a more economical photomechanical process.

Shur-Strike Counter Display

Creek Chub Bait Co. started producing an economy line of baits in the 1930's known as Shur-Strike.
The quality of these lures was exceptional, especially when it's known they sold at a fraction the
price of  regular CCBCO lures.
Age, the type of bait, graphics & condition will normally determine the value of these
vintage Shur-Strike signs & displays. 
These retail store advertising signs & displays are divided into two major types: those which usually have great graphics & relate the virtues of certain lures but are strictly advertising the product.
They never had any lures actually attached to them.
The other type are point-of-sale counter pasteboard displays that have lures hanging from them. 
Shur-Strike signs/displays of any type are rarely seen. Arguably, the style that held baits might be considered tougher because once the dozen lures were sold off the board, the display would be thrown out. A retailer might be more inclined to keep a sign advertising Shur-Strike because it's appeal came from the
sign's graphics or catchy text.
This green & yellow pasteboard store display has two easels on the back for  counter top exposure.
There are a dozen attached glass eye Midget Pikies in eight Shur-Strike colors:
Silver Flitter, Red Side, Chain Pickerel, "Peanut Butter", Strawberry, Rainbow, Yellow Scale, & Pikie.
Shur-Strike lures were a hugh success.
They were made for several decades & sold to some of America's biggest retailers.

c. 1938 Creek Chub Bait Co., Counter Sign

CCBCo commissioned this promotional die cut cardboard sign in order to introduce its "Six New Dingbats".
The baits offered in a banner at the base of the sign advertised the following
Dingbat Series:
#5300 Musky, #5400 Surface, #F1300 Fly Rod, #F1400 Fly Rod, #5200 Midget, #5100 (standard) Dingbat.
Above the banner is a smiling angler in his canoe, pulling aboard a nice bass caught on a CCBCo Pikie.
These counter top signs were sent to sporting goods retailers throughout the U.S.
Unfortunately, most of these advertisements were eventually discarded,
resulting in few examples surviving today.

CCBCo PIKIE "INTRO" FLYER

This small advertising flyer was produced c.1920 to be included in the then new Pikie Intro "Picture Box".
Those I have seen all have folds from storage in these boxes.
A desirable collectible for Creek Chub collector, especially those who specialize in the Pikie series.
Few of these have survived to the present.
Much tougher than the Pikie Intro Box & infinitely rarer than the early Pikie lure.

Boxed Creek Chub Reel

This style reel is known as a Wawasee (named after an Indiana lake) or an Indiana-style reel.
It was produced by O.K. Machine Co. in Ft. Wayne, IN & was stamped with the Creek Chub company name. Evidently, the sales were limited for the CCBCO reel because it is a scarce commodity today.
This boxed set was found when a major lure collection was sold via auction at a National lure convention.
Each is a different variation.
This box is printed on the label “…Mfd. For Creek Chub Bait Co…” but no manufactures name while the other box has the O.K. Machine Co. printed on the label & a STICKER identifying it as a Creek Chub reel.
Unbelievably, the original packing slip for this set is intact. It's directly from CCBCO instead of a dealer.
It's dated 1938 & the price was $2.75.

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