United States anglers are thought to be the first anglers to use artificial lures for bass fishing. Prior to that, most anglers used live bait.
Anglers began to develop fly patterns (artificial lures) to fish for specific species of bass. Eventually, each fly pattern began to be associated with a specific species of fish.
Anglers, such as Theodore Gordon, during the late 19th century began using flies to fish the Catskill Mountains of New York. They used the flies to fish the trout filled streams and rivers of the area such as the Beaverkill and the Willowemoc.
These anglers developed new fly patterns, and often wrote about the popularity of fly fishing in the area and the United States. Charles F. Orvis, the founder of Orvis, helped to popularize fly fishing as a sport. He designed new reels and fly designs. Fly fishing historian Jim Brown described Ovis’ 1874 reel as the, “ benchmark of American reel design.” The Orvis company began to supply Americans all across the U.S. with fly fishing equipment.
The popularity of fly fishing peaked in the early 1920s in the Northeast and the Midwest. Ernest Hemingway helped to popularize the sport by writing about it. After the 1920s fly fishing’s popularity decreased. However, in the 1950s with the help of fiberglass rods, synthetic fly lines, and monofilament leaders, fly fishing became popular again.
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