This rare Heddon
3-30 tournament casting reel was manufactured at the Heddon factory in the early
1920s and was owned by Will Heddon, the eldest of James and Eva’s three
children. Will was born in Dowagiac on July 14, 1870. Although none of the
Heddon children had middle names, Will chose to adopt a middle initial and
became known as W.T. Heddon for the remainder of his long and fascinating life.
W.T. Heddon co-founded the first Dowagiac phone company in 1897 – a venture
that rapidly made him a wealthy man. Three years later, it was W.T. who agreed
to loan his father $1,000.00 to help start a small company that would engage
itself in the business of manufacturing fishing lures. James Heddon & Son
was established in 1900 and the first commercial lure – the Dowagiac Surface
Bait – appeared in 1902.
During his long life, W.T. fished in many parts of the country and helped
develop and improve countless Heddon lures, including the famous “Zaragossa.”
He also authored articles about fishing in
Florida
under the pen name Billy Bass. W.T. Heddon died on Aug. 8, 1955, just a few
weeks after his 85th birthday.
Jim Heddon, who also owned this reel, was the son of W.T. and Laura Heddon. Jim
was born in
Chetek,
Wisconsin
– where the Heddons had a rodbuilding business and vacation home – on June
25, 1913, and like his father, spent much of his life in
Florida
. Jim was named after the company’s founder, James Heddon, and briefly worked
at the Dowagiac factory during his youth. Jim Heddon spent his later years in
Waverly,
Fla., and passed away on June 29, 1999.
This Heddon tournament reel was acquired from a bush pilot who befriended Jim
Heddon during his many hunting and fishing trips to the
Alaska
wilderness. Jim, who had inherited the reel and other memorabilia from his
father, W.T. Heddon, gave this reel and related items to the pilot in
appreciation for their years of friendship.
The
pilot, now an older gentleman, owned the reel almost 25 years, keeping
it safely stored in a gun cabinet at his home in North Pole, Alaska, a
small town near Fairbanks.
Below
is the text of his original letter, dated Jan. 16, 2006, describing when, where - and how - he
obtained this wonderful old reel. The names of people mentioned in the
letter have been redacted to protect their privacy, but they do appear
in the original copy of the letter, which is displayed with the reel:
Dear
Rob:
This
old Heddon reel was given to me, along with the casting weight and
lures, by Jim Heddon. I met him through my friend XXXX
XXXXXX who came to
Alaska
in 1969. An avid fisherman and hunter, XXXX
teamed with me for endless trips all over Alaska. I kept a
float plane & one on wheels ready to go all the time.
Jim
Heddon was one of the people from the
Orlando
,
Florida
area, XXXX and
I invited to
Fairbanks
around 1981. He came up three years in a row during moose
hunting season. We took Jim to our moose camp in the
Brooks Range
, east of Cold Foot. He was a super nice man and enjoyed the
moose camp & also our fish camp at
Minto
Lake
, mostly a Pike fishing area, but it had all types of fish
and game associated with
Alaska
.
We
took Jim Heddon and other guests without charge. He really
appreciated the trips. He gave me the reel and lures
because I wouldn't accept money. He said they came from his
dad & would be a cherished collector's item.
Regards,
xxx
xxxxx,
North
Pole, Alaska
The reel has W.T. Heddon’s initials – WTH – scratched into the reel seat.
It also has a tiny tournament handle, original silk line and its Heddon embossed
leather case. The rare Heddon casting weight box that accompanied the reel is
decorated with an oakleaf cluster border design identical to early Slopenose
picture boxes, although this box dates to the mid-1920s. Inside is the original
aluminum, half-ounce casting weight stamped NASAC, which stands for the
National Association of Scientific Angling Clubs, a group formed in
Kalamazoo
,
Michigan, in 1906 to further the art of competitive casting.
(click on images below to
enlarge)
