A STUNNING library of fishing books collected by the wealthy industrial barons of Manchester during the 19th Century, rediscovered in private hands after 65 years, will be sold by Bonhams in Honiton at 11am on October 15th.

The Angling sale offers fifty lots from The Manchester Angling Association’s library, many with personal dedications by the authors. Founded by seven anglers of the City of Manchester on May 6th 1878, membership of the Association in 1885 included: Francis Francis, Alfred Jardine, G. Martin, John Currie, J. A. Hutton and F.J. Faraday.

The very successful MAA worked closely with the Manchester Corporation in connection with their fish stocking programme and large numbers of trout were reared in reservoirs adjacent to Horton House.

These fish were used to stock waters that the Association had access too, on which they could pursue the art of fly-fishing. 

Their Library continued to expand until the 1940s when it was sold into private hands.

ANGLING TIME CAPSULE

The late Herbert Reynolds, a noted pike and salmon fisherman, is also represented in this sale by a number of fishing books, paintings and tackle – a veritable time capsule of angling history. H

is collection of 21 angling books include: Luard. G.D: Fishing Fortunes and Misfortunes. Luard. G.D: Fishing : Fact or Fantasy? Walker. C F: Riverside Reflections. Menzies: Salmon Fishing.  Adamson: The Enterprising Angler.1st edition 1950.  Potts: Roaming Down the Wye 1st edition 1949 with D.W. Chaytor:  Letters to a Salmon Fisher’s Sons. 4th edition 1936. Calderwood. W L: Salmon! 1st edition 1938. Bailey. John: Grandfather was a Trout 1st edition 1962.

 Herbert Reynolds was an avid and successful fisherman who spent many happy hours fishing the River Wye around Mordiford-on-Wye, Hampton Bishop and Sellack from the 1920’s onwards including his own water Strangford End Fishery on the Wye from 1949.

In 1946 he was awarded the Angler’s News Annual prize for best specimen freshwater fish caught by rod and line.

His success with pike is noted in a Birmingham newspaper account mentioning that fishing between Ross and Hereford, he caught 114 large pike and returned this same amount again.

His best day was in December when he killed eight pike totalling 111lb, ranging in weight between 11lbs and 18lbs, some of his successful specimens are included in the sale.

He was also a keen salmon fisher, regularly spending February at Loch Tay in Perthshire, His catches have been immortalised in watercolour by the author and artist G.D.

Luard of Fullers Earth, Cattistock, Dorset. The angling fraternity lost a fine fisherman when Mr. Reynolds tragically lost most of his sight in 1950.

His tackle is listed in the sale as lots 220 to 223, the Spicer cased pike, two mounted heads together with his tackle to include boxed Hardy baits.

Lots 57 and 58 are watercolours by G.D. Luard from the Reynolds collection, of the fisherman landing salmon in Loch Tay in the 1940’s. Each is estimated to sell for £100 -150.