Thomas H. Gelston

Place: Oyster Bay

Born: 1851

Death: 1924

Biography:

Thomas H. Gelston was an American artist born in 1851 in Oyster Bay, United States. He died in 1924. Gelston was a descendant of a prominent Long Island family and enjoyed hunting the marshes of the bays. He is known for his decoy carving and is considered an important wildfowl decoy carver. His decoys are on the 'Top 50 Decoys Ever Sold at Auction' list. In the decades after his early death in 1924, collectors have increasingly admired his work for how he shaped and carved the heads of his shorebird decoys.