Editing Fishing (section)

===Recreational fishing===
{{main|Recreational fishing}}
[[File:Louis John Rhead - Izaak Wolton and his scholar.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Izaak Walton]]'s ''[[The Compleat Angler|Compleat Angler]]'', published in 1653 helped popularise fly fishing as a sport.<br />Woodcut by [[Louis Rhead]]]]
The early evolution of fishing as recreation is not clear. For example, there is anecdotal evidence for [[fly fishing]] in Japan. However, fly fishing was likely to have been a means of survival, rather than recreation. The earliest English essay on recreational fishing was published in 1496, by [[Juliana Berners|Dame Juliana Berners]], the prioress of the Benedictine [[Sopwell Priory|Sopwell Nunnery]]. The essay was titled ''Treatyse of Fysshynge wyth an Angle'',<ref>Berners, Dame Juliana (1496) [http://www.luminarium.org/renascence-editions/berners/berners.html ''A treatyse of fysshynge wyth an Angle''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230629102803/https://www.luminarium.org/renascence-editions/berners/berners.html |date=29 June 2023 }} (transcription by Risa S. Bear).</ref> and included detailed information on fishing waters, the construction of [[fishing rod|rods]] and lines, and the use of natural baits and artificial flies.<ref>Berners, Dame Juliana. (2008). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 20 June 2008, from [https://web.archive.org/web/20131016013753/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1419859/Dame-Juliana-Berners Encyclopædia Britannica Online]</ref>

Recreational fishing took a great leap forward after the [[English Civil War]], where a newly found interest in the activity left its mark on the many books and treatises that were written on the subject at the time. [[Leonard Mascall]] in 1589 wrote ''A booke of Fishing with Hooke and Line'' along with many others he produced in his life on game and wildlife in England at the time. ''[[The Compleat Angler]]'' was written by [[Izaak Walton]] in 1653 (although Walton continued to add to it for a quarter of a century) and described the fishing in the [[Derbyshire]] [[River Wye, Derbyshire|Wye]]. It was a celebration of the art and spirit of fishing in prose and verse. A second part to the book was added by Walton's friend [[Charles Cotton]].<ref name="Herdfly">{{cite web|url=https://fishingmind.com/fly-fishing-techniques-in-the-fifteenth-century/|title=Fly fishing techniques in the fifteenth century|author=Andrew N. Herd|access-date=22 October 2021|archive-date=22 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211022224519/https://fishingmind.com/fly-fishing-techniques-in-the-fifteenth-century/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Charles Kirby designed an improved fishing hook in 1655 that remains relatively unchanged to this day. He went on to invent the Kirby bend, a distinctive hook with an offset point, still commonly used today.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8d6yECc8kpsC|title=The Science of Fly-fishing|author=Stan L. Ulanski|year=2003|publisher=University of Virginia Press|page=4|isbn=978-0-8139-2210-2}}</ref>

[[File:Ustonson advert.jpg|thumb|left|Trading card of the Ustonson company, an early firm specialising in fishing equipment, and holder of a [[Royal warrant of appointment (United Kingdom)|royal warrant]] from the 1760s.]]
The 18th century was mainly an era of consolidation of the techniques developed in the previous century. Running rings began to appear along the fishing rods, which gave anglers greater control over the cast line. The rods themselves were also becoming increasingly sophisticated and specialised for different roles. Jointed rods became common from the middle of the century and [[bamboo]] came to be used for the top section of the rod, giving it much greater strength and flexibility.

The industry also became commercialised – rods and tackle were sold at the [[haberdashers]] store. After the [[Great Fire of London]] in 1666, artisans moved to [[Redditch]] which became a centre of production of fishing-related products from the 1730s. Onesimus Ustonson established his shop in 1761, and his establishment remained a market leader for the next century. He received a [[Royal warrant of appointment (United Kingdom)|royal warrant]] from three successive monarchs starting with King [[George IV]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.greatflyfishingtips.com/welcome-to-great-fly-fishing-tips/|title=Welcome To Great Fly Fishing Tips|date=December 2011|access-date=16 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627040414/http://www.greatflyfishingtips.com/welcome-to-great-fly-fishing-tips/|archive-date=27 June 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> He also invented the [[fishing reel|multiplying winch]]. The commercialization of the industry came at a time of expanded interest in fishing as a recreational hobby for members of the [[aristocracy]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Fishing Tackle Chapter 3|url=http://www.calmproductions.com/acatalog/GT_Fishing%20Tackle_Chp3.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130918103205/http://www.calmproductions.com/acatalog/GT_Fishing%20Tackle_Chp3.pdf|archive-date=18 September 2013|access-date=16 July 2014|website=CLAM PRODUCTIONS}}</ref>

The impact of the [[Industrial Revolution]] was first felt in the manufacture of fly lines. Instead of anglers twisting their lines – a laborious and time-consuming process – the new textile spinning machines allowed for a variety of tapered lines to be easily manufactured and marketed.

British fly fishing continued to develop in the 19th century, with the emergence of fly fishing clubs, along with the appearance of several books on the subject of fly tying and fly fishing techniques.

By the mid to late 19th century, expanding [[leisure]] opportunities for the middle and lower classes began to have an effect on fly fishing, which steadily grew in mass appeal. The expansion of the railway network in Britain allowed the less affluent for the first time to take weekend trips to the seaside or rivers for fishing. Richer [[hobby]]ists ventured further abroad.<ref name="Herdy1800-1850">{{cite web|url=http://www.flyfishinghistory.com/18001850.htm#|title=Fly Fishing in the Years 1800–1850|author=Andrew N. Herd|access-date=16 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703003401/http://www.flyfishinghistory.com/18001850.htm|archive-date=3 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> The large rivers of [[Norway]] replete with large stocks of [[salmon]] began to attract fishers from England in large numbers in the middle of the century – ''Jones's guide to Norway, and salmon-fisher's pocket companion'', published in 1848, was written by Frederic Tolfrey and was a popular guide to the country.<ref name="Herdy1800-1850"/>

[[File:Nottingham reel.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.05|'Nottingham' and 'Scarborough' reel designs.]]
Modern reel design had begun in England during the latter part of the 18th century, and the predominant model in use was known as the '[[Nottingham]] reel'. The reel was a wide drum that spooled out freely and was ideal for allowing the bait to drift a long way out with the current. Geared multiplying reels never successfully caught on in Britain, but had more success in the United States, where [[George Snyder (fly reels)|George Snyder]] of [[Kentucky]] modified similar models into his bait-casting reel, the first American-made design in 1810.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyfishinghistory.com/tech18th.htm|title=Fly Fishing in the Eighteenth Century|author=Andrew N. Herd|access-date=16 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140719031319/http://www.flyfishinghistory.com/tech18th.htm|archive-date=19 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The material used for the rod itself changed from the heavy woods native to England to lighter and more elastic varieties imported from abroad, especially from South America and the [[West Indies]]. [[Bamboo]] rods became the generally favoured option from the mid-19th century, and several strips of the material were cut from the cane, milled into shape, and then glued together to form the light, strong, hexagonal rods with a solid core that were superior to anything that preceded them. [[George Cotton]] and his predecessors fished their flies with long rods, and light lines allowing the wind to do most of the work of getting the fly to the fish.<ref name="Brit">{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/208708/fishing/2330/Early-history#ref70275|title=fishing|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica|date=July 2023|access-date=21 June 2022|archive-date=4 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504214050/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/208708/fishing/2330/Early-history#ref70275|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Trout fishing 1860s.jpg|thumb|left|Fishing became a popular recreational activity in the 19th century. Print from [[Currier and Ives]].]]
Tackle design began to improve in the 1880s. The introduction of new woods to the manufacture of fly rods made it possible to cast flies into the wind on silk lines, instead of [[horse hair]]. These lines allowed for a much greater casting distance. However, these early fly lines proved troublesome as they had to be coated with various dressings to make them float and needed to be taken off the reel and dried every four hours or so to prevent them from becoming waterlogged. Another negative consequence was that it became easy for the much longer line to get into a tangle – this was called a 'tangle' in Britain, and a 'backlash' in the US. This problem spurred the invention of the regulator to evenly spool the line out and prevent tangling.<ref name="Brit"/>

The American, Charles F. Orvis, designed and distributed a novel reel and fly design in 1874, described by reel historian Jim Brown as the "benchmark of American reel design," and the first fully modern fly reel.<ref name="brown_reel_treasury">Brown, Jim. ''A Treasury of Reels: The Fishing Reel Collection of The American Museum of Fly Fishing.'' Manchester, Vermont: The American Museum of Fly Fishing, 1990.</ref><ref name="schullery_orvis_story">Schullery, Paul. ''The Orvis Story: 150 Years of an American Sporting Tradition.'' Manchester, Vermont, The Orvis Company, Inc., 2006</ref>

[[Albert Illingworth, 1st Baron Illingworth]] a textiles magnate, patented the modern form of fixed-spool spinning reel in 1905. When casting Illingworth's reel design, the line was drawn off the leading edge of the spool but was restrained and rewound by a line pickup, a device which orbits around the stationary spool. Because the line did not have to pull against a rotating spool, much lighter lures could be cast than with conventional reels.<ref name="Brit"/>

The development of inexpensive [[fiberglass]] rods, synthetic fly lines, and monofilament leaders in the early 1950s revived the popularity of fly fishing.
[[File:Man fishing on the beach - kanagawa - 2023 12 16.webm|thumb|A man casting a lure and spinning the reel in [[Kanagawa prefecture|Kanagawa]], [[Japan]].]]