Who owned your book?

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (fishnbanjo) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:20:53 GMT

enigma309 wrote:
A fascinating thread, thanks.
Without wishing to hi-jack it but, very much related, do you sign the books you own, or gift to others? and what inspires your comments?

Brian

Only once have I ever inscribed a book, it was a Second Hardbound Edition of Trout I sent to rodmaker Gary Lacey...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (enigma309) — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 10:27:53 GMT

A fascinating thread, thanks.
Without wishing to hi-jack it but, very much related, do you sign the books you own, or gift to others? and what inspires your comments?

Brian

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (cwfly) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:15:48 GMT

Alberto,

Those are wonderful books and thanks for writing about them.

I also enjoyed very much your website.

And thanks to all the others who took the time to tell of their books.

Charlie

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Ombra) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:15:05 GMT

Among my collection of books I have several antiques regarding salmon fly fishing and tying. Some of them still have the ex libris or some inscription on their pages but it's not easy now to research for someone lived in the 19th century. What I like to think is the fact that those persons were, one day of many years back, reading those pages and dreaming as I do.

Staying with more recent books I have one copy of Salmon fishing of Col. Bates which was owned by Helen Shaw. This...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (DoctorFly) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:12:47 GMT

I've got a number of books signed by the author with dedications, but the most mysterious (and romantic) is this one in Frederic Van de Water's "In Defense of Worms".

Others, with owners' names and messages give a wonderful history of a books life and familily relationships. One book went from patient to doctor, to son to doctor to patient.

Another, that I was particularly pleased...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (LuckyStrikeV) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:27:59 GMT

I purchased this book loooong ago and have always enjoyed paging through it. The Northern Angler seems to be a bound group of newspapers from Sept 3rd1892 to July 15th 1893.

The content is delightful as it allows the reader to travel back in time 117 years. The "Who owned your book" part is another interesting feature. It has a bookplate naming John Arnold as the original owner, and it came with a most delightful Christmas letter gifting the book from a Victoria BC...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Flyman615) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:19:19 GMT

I have another book in my library with an ownership story to tell. It's a 1937 copy in DJ of Eugene V. Connett's, "Any Luck?"
I found it about 15 years ago in a local antique shop.

It's inscribed:
Dick Fort
From Dad
Christmas, 1937

Now here's the interesting part, I met and got to know Mr. Fort in the 1980's before I found his book. We...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Aransas) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 19:53:06 GMT

I always enjoy coming across an old book with a personal inscription. Last year I purchased a copy of Dana Lamb's Bright Salmon and Brown Trout. Inside I found the following inscription: To our favorite fisherman - Christmas 1966- with love, Mom & Dad. All I know about the owner is that he/she was a fisherman and received a special gift from Mom & Dad.

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Ed Pirie) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:25:06 GMT

I am an incorrigible bibliophile and quite content with my flaw to say the least. Anyway, this may have a lot to do with why I am a teacher. Over the years I have accumulated many books with endearing inscriptions from the authors to friends and acquaintenances. In fact, I especially look for volumes so inscribed. My one great thought about this is that often the inscriptions indicate a great fondness and familiarity between the inscriber and the receiver. I know none of us live forever, but...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (jeffkn1) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 09:05:39 GMT

I picked up several books, all with Fred's name in them, when Lang's auctioned off items from the Thomas estate a few years back. The book I'd like to have, and one only of regional interest I suppose, was co-written by Fred Barker and John Danforth detailing a winter trapping trip in 1882 and entitled "Trapping and Hunting". I own a copy but the the copy I want is a reference in the library of the Maine Historical Society and it bears the...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Mainiac) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:44:23 GMT

I have an assortment of books formerly owned by interesting persons. I have made it a niche in my angling book collecting to buy these type of books when available. I have never paid a premium for any of them which makes it even more satisfying.

Highlighting some of my favorite, not necessarily most valuable, finds....

1950 Payne catalog belonging to Eugene Connett. Contains a hand written letter from Tom Collins (VP of Payne Corp) to Mr. Connett.

A assortment...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Eric Peper) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:17:24 GMT

Several years back, I acquired Colonel E. J. Stackpole's personal (unnumbered) copy of the leather bound limited edition of Bill Blades' Fishing Flies and Fly Tying, published by Stackpole, of course. It isn't in great shape but the provenance is indeed fascinating.

EP

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (quashnet) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:48:13 GMT

"Ephemera" (Fitzgibbon), Book of the Salmon (1850): with bookplate of Henry P. Siegel, designed by artist/angler Charles DeFeo. A few decades ago, receiving Col. Siegel's catalog of hunting and fishing books was just as important as getting Martin Keane's catalog of rods and reels.

Robert "Barnwell" Roosevelt, Game Fish of the North (1862): signed by its owner John H....

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Ken M 44) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 07:31:16 GMT

Mine would be A Quaint Treatise on 'Flees, and the Art a Artyfichall Flee Making' - editted by W H Aldam from an earlier manuscript and published in 1875. Fly sheet is signed and addressed by F Buckland and the frontice piece is inscribed to 'Frank Buckland Esq. with the Editors kind regards'.
Frank Buckland was Queen Victoria's fish and fisheries 'expert' and carried sufficient weight to leave a foundation in his name ;

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (mer) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:24:45 GMT

The Complete Fly Tier by Reuben Cross. Owned by James D Crowe (or Crowl). What is interesting about it is the inscription inside:
April 11, 1972. Happy 37th birthday! Among other pleasantries may you have many more days and years of trout fishing. Mom and Dad.

The interesting bits: My birthday is April 10. When James was getting this book, I just turned 11. When I got the book in the mail, I had just turned 40. I found it off abebooks.com, about a dozen showed up in the search,...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (DKS3) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 22:29:28 GMT

Anyone able to tell me who Jack Kingsley may be? My copy of Dana Lamb's book Woodsmoke and Watercress is inscribed: "For Jack Kingsley with the best of luck Dana S. Lamb Sunken Meadow December 1965"

Any insights welcome.

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (cwfly) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 18:00:54 GMT

Mrs. Stevenson's husband, Gordon, was but another artist. One of his watercolors, Catskill Stream, is in the Brooklyn Museum.

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (Flyman615) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 17:18:42 GMT

Fellow Bibliophiles:

I have a copy of "A Trout and Salmon Fisherman for Seventy-five Years" by Edward Ringwood Hewitt in DJ which is warmly inscribed:

To Luther Thurber-

If my father had lived, I know what pleasure he would have taken
in autographing this book for Esther's brother and a fellow fishing enthusiast.

Candace Hewitt Stevenson

I found the book at a local library book sale out here in "fly...

Re: Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (cwfly) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 16:13:29 GMT

Thanks to all for posting some remarkable and interesting books with some history and a fair amount of celebrity. I have but one other example, albeit modest standing up against what the rest of you have posted.

Unfortunately, the book contains no personal inscriptions or markings. I do however trust the owners of the McLean, VA bookstore Old...

Who owned your book?

feeds@yuku.com (cwfly) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:39:15 GMT

Maybe 40 years ago I bought my copy of Henry P. Wells, Fly-Rods and Fly-Tackle at a used book store somewhere in the greater Beantown area. I not infrequently re-read the book, and it was well read when I acquired it.