Vintage Ephemera: “Ephemera are generally things that are printed for a specific occasion or purpose & aren’t meant to last after their original use ……… Even though they were originally produced to have a short life span, ephemera that are preserved in archives” (or collections) “are still very valuable for learning about the past” (truncated from online definition sourced from library.illinois.edu).
‘Vintage or Antique Fishing Ephemera’: is specifically related directly or indirectly to sport fishing or commercial fishing and can include ads, packaging (e.g. lure boxes), catalogues, box catalogs, photos & post cards, etc.. Antique & vintage fishing tackle collectors or researchers often find these items very informative from an historic perspective or source it to bring lost knowledge to light ……. other times it’s simply a joy to look at as an art form or be amazed that such a fragile piece of history has survived the ravages of time (definition cobbled together from open, on-line sourcing).
I only own a small number of “vintage or antique books about fishing” & while they may not fit the classic definition of ephemera, I’ve included them in the “Miscellaneous” category for convenience. …….. I own a relatively small number of original “vintage fishing related ads”, but in the interest of sharing knowledge or adding context to items shown in this website, I’ve included copies of many of the “vintage ads” I’ve copied from “open” sources for my own research & interest purposes ……… Where the ads etc. shown in this section aren’t originals in my collection, I’ve tried to note the source or just a comment “(copy)”. My apologies if I missed some of these acknowledgements (I simply wasn’t great at documenting my sources of these for many years, but I’m now getting more diligent about these important acknowledgements).
Check out the “Vintage Fishing Ephemera” drop-down menus for my ephemera collection, which includes sub-sections for: “Ads“, “Catalogs” (full sized & ‘box catalogs’), “Lure Boxes & Packaging“, “Victorian era Trade Cards” & “Miscellaneous Ephemera“. Some of the items posted in the aforementioned “Vintage Fishing Ephemera” sub-sections, may also be duplicated in the sections for vintage “lures“, “hooks” & “floats” etc., in order to provide context for individual photos & descriptions of specific items from my collection that are associated with the ad, catalog, box or packaging etc.