Often bird houses are hard to find and may be high in price when found
. My grandfather told me of boys who made them to sell and by managing can make a good profit on them if they care to earn money that way. Several years ago I undertook to work through the schools to get the grade children interested in birds and nature so we had a city wide bird house contest offering prizes for the best and most suitable work in each school building then in the city and it was surprising the interest taken in this project. Several hundred were made and on exhibition and it created a fine spirit and co-operation of the children in the study of nature.
The newspapers advertised free and gave us much publicity. Stores who bought goods in wooden boxes and fruit stores and other places offered us boxes free. Lumber yards and carpenters gave us odds and ends of boards and lumber for the taking so we had plenty of material for our use without cost.
The finished work was judged and prizes given by the merchants to the prize winners, then the work was sold to buyers at reasonable prices as the material was all but free only in certain windows up town the best ones were displayed free. They read bulletins on bird houses from the county agent or the dept of agriculture at Washington DC so the work was done under rules for the right kind and size for special birds wanted.
He also made a large chart with original design for other type bird houses and it was sent around to the various buildings to the youngsters who were making the houses. This was long before high tech solar landscape lights. Many types were offered some log cabins of many patterns made of common boxes and short ends from various sources then covered with damp bark from cut logs fastened on with small nails. We were sure of making the right size opening where it should be in each box in order to stand the best chance of getting our bird, also were careful to place the house at the proper height and place necessary for the bird wanted.
Right now there is a movement in the city where idle boys who have no special kind of work to do are being collected and taught to do this very thing - make bird houses for sale and the co-operation is wonderful from the city folks who are interested in the boys and the chance to buy wanted bird houses.