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Habitats
The river Thames has a wonderful range of habitats for fish. The gentle upper reaches in a low flat landscape are suited to barbel, bream, carp, chub, perch, pike and roach. As the depth and flow of the river increase, so do the variety and size of the fish. Thirty different species are available to the sportsman between Cricklade and Teddington.
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Gudgeon-fishing |
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Advertisements |
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Popularity
The popularity of the sport can be seen in the names of many of the pubs that line the river. The Anglers Rest at Bell Weir Lock and the Anglers Inn at Walton-on-Thames are just two examples that were advertised in Taunts guides to the river.
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Love it or hate it
"However many ignoramuses may condemn fishing for its monotony, and twit fishermen for their patience, which they consider allied to stupidity, there is, perhaps, no sport which offers such a variety of prey, nor which puts the ingenuity of man to so many devices and expedients in the catching of them."
This is just one extract from a newspaper of 1850, which we hope will give a feeling for fishing as a hobby over the centuries. We are still collecting images and documents for this topic, and will update it in future months. The article continues below.
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Fishing excursions 1850 |
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Fishy Tales, 1850
'Tis true, ancient historians tell of "shoals of roach," which some two centuries ago used to "come down from the country," as low as the Temple and London Bridge, and of one John Reeves, a waterman of Essex stairs, who used to watch daily for their arrival, and then go round to apprise his customers, aldermen or barristers learned in the law..... who forthwith.. came out to catch them. Those merry times have passed away, thanks to gas and steam, and the teeming sewers of modern Babylon.
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Introduction
Fishing
