Titled “They Came to Shoot — A History of California Duck Clubs and Wetland Conservation,” the 500-page book includes a chapter for each of the state’s wetland areaswhich were previously published in “California Waterfowl,” the magazine of California Waterfowl Association, a non-profit conservation organization.

Entirely funded by grants and donors, the book was completed by Hall after more than three years of research.

The basic history of over 3,000 duck clubs, both historic and currently active, is included as detailed listings at the end of each chapter.

A CD with 12 historic and modern maps is also included with the book.

More than 100 black and white historic photographs and 72 color photos are displayed. The book printing was limited to 500 copies.

The book is a comprehensive look at historical waterfowl hunting and habitat in California.

It is divided into 14 chapters which cover each of the state’s major wetland regions.

Additional chapters provide a look at some historic vessels used in duck hunting on San Francisco Bay, Suisun Marsh and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

of

women at traditionally all-male duck clubs, and provides

biographical profiles of a dozen of California’s legendary

duck shooters and conservationists.”

The book shows how tens of thousands of acres of coastal wetlands and hundreds of duck clubs were obliterated from coastal Los Angeles and Orange County as well as the San Francisco Bay Area, why some marshes were protected from development, and the role of duck clubs in the preservation of wetlands through the critical 1920s and 1930s, before public funding for the conservation of California’s marshes.

Meticulously researched, filled with data on historic duck clubs, and illustrated with historic hunting scenes, “They Came to Shoot” fills a long-needed niche in the history of California’s marshes.

A book signing by the author will be held at Margie’s Book Nook in Uptown Susanville from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10.