Piscatorial Society

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A meeting of the Piscatorial Society in 1878. Pisc-soc.jpg
A meeting of the Piscatorial Society in 1878.

The Piscatorial Society is one of the oldest angling societies in England, if not the world. It was founded in 1836 and still flourishes today. It leases fly fishing water on a number of chalk streams in Hampshire and Wiltshire, including the Wylye, the Test, the Itchen and the Hampshire Avon. It no longer has a base in London, but maintains a Rod Room on one of its Wiltshire rivers. Although members originally fished for all sorts of fish (the society's crest still represents the head of a pike), the society now concentrates on fishing for brown trout and grayling with upstream dry fly or unweighted nymph imitations dressed lightly in the style of G. E. M. Skues.[ citation needed ]

The Society has, at its core, three key objectives. First, to maintain a fellowship of flyfishers and the tradition of flyfishing, where possible, for wild or naturalised brown trout and grayling. Secondly, to preserve what remains of the chalk stream environment; unpolluted water, healthy and appropriate weed growth and good fly hatches. Thirdly, to enhance the Society's libraries and archives.[ citation needed ]

History

The first meeting of which the Minutes survive took place on 2 November 1837, and at this meeting it was resolved to have a card engraved for presentation to members.[ citation needed ] This card bears the inscription:

The Piscatorial Society – Established 16th October, 1837 – For promoting friendly intercourse and mutual information among the lovers of the Art of Angling -Held at the 'Marquis of Granby,' South Audley Street" [1]

The decorated chair in the picture at the head of the table still exists along with many other original artefacts and books. The Club Secretary is Geoff Fleming.[ citation needed ]

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<i>Minor Tactics of the Chalk Stream</i>

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<i>Floating Flies and How to Dress Them</i>

Floating Flies and How to Dress Them - A Treatise on the Most Modern Methods of Dressing Artificial Flies for Trout and Grayling with Full Illustrated Directions and Containing Ninety Hand-Coloured Engravings of the Most Killing Patterns Together with a Few Hints to Dry-Fly Fishermen is a fly fishing book written by Frederic M. Halford published in London in April 1886 by Sampson Low. A deluxe edition on large paper sold out before publication and the trade edition of 500 nearly so.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bibliography of fly fishing (species related)</span>

This annotated bibliography is intended to list both notable and not so notable works of English language, non-fiction and fiction related to the sport of fly fishing listed by year published. Although 100% of any book listed is not necessarily devoted to fly fishing, all these titles have significant fly fishing content. Included in this bibliography is a list of species related fly fishing literature.

<i>Dry-Fly Fishing in Theory and Practice</i>

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<i>The Fly-fishers Entomology</i> 1836 book by Alfred Ronalds

The Fly-Fisher's Entomology, Illustrated by Coloured Representations of the Natural and Artificial Insect and Accompanied by a Few Observations and Instructions Relative to Trout-and-Grayling Fishing, first published in 1836 by Alfred Ronalds (1802–1860), was the first comprehensive work related to the entomology associated with fly fishing. Although the work was Ronalds' only book, it was published in 11 editions between 1836 and 1913 and has been extensively reprinted in the last 100 years.

References

  1. Hammond, P.M. (editor) (Andover,1936) "The Book of the Piscatorial Society 1836-1936"