Ohio’s deer herd is legendary among trophy hunters, those avid and sometimes obsessed bone collectors who would and will do just about anything to slay the biggest whitetail deer they can find.
In fact, trophy hunting has taken on a life of its own. But that’s a whole other story in itself. This one is about a huge rack that is looking for its next home.
Antlers
The massive set of whitetail deer antlers in question held court in Streetsboro, Ohio, for several years in Henry Defer’s repair shop, a fully stuffed farm shop where Hank, as he was known, did fixes on mostly cars, trucks, farm equipment, and his favorite interest of all, his own dirt track stock cars.
If it ran on gas Hank could make it go, especially if it ran in circles.
It was in the late 1970s when I discovered the huge antlers hanging in Hank’s barn yard repair shop. It was a cold winter day and a friend and I had been chasing rabbits on the Defer farm.
It was Saturday, so we knew we would find Hank twisting wrenches in the shop and that we would be welcome. So we stopped to find him and say hello and thanks for the use of his woodlot for the morning.
We stuffed the tired beagles into their boxes and went inside. On the wall, somewhere between hooks full of gaskets and oddball tools was a fine collection of fan belts and other never-to-be-used goodies.
Their home was on the countless points of a very impressive set of antlers. I was already into Ohio deer hunting and was immediately drooling as I eyed the trophy turned fan belt display.
Bartow brothers
Hank told an interesting story about the antlers. He said that a local fellow, Delbert Bartow, had killed the big buck during Ohio’s 1947 deer season, the first season of modern deer hunting offered in just eight northeast Ohio counties.
Defer said that Bartow and his brother both downed massive deer in the swamps between Streetsboro and Hudson.
I found that there was an earlier season opened in 1943 in three southern counties but the ’47 season was the first in our neck of the woods.
As Defer recalled, the Bartow boys had seen the bucks before and thus hunted for them. The Akron Beacon Journal published a picture of either one or both of the Bartow bucks.
I’m not sure but I think Bartow simply gave the antlers to Defer.
This set is non-typical and counts 18 points, plus one missing. If memory serves, Delbert’s brother’s buck was even larger, a 21-point monster.
Who wants them?
I mentioned to Hank that if he ever thought about discarding the rack to discard them in my direction. Later, during a work shop purge, he did just that. Now they need a new home.
We’ve moved and they need to go. My first choice would be to a descendant of the Bartow boys but I would entertain other suggestions or requests.
