Cornelia Thurza Crosby (1854-1946) stood six feet tall, was the first woman to legally shoot a caribou in Maine, held the first Maine Guide license issued, caught 200 trout in one day (she was an early advocate of catch-and-release), did not believe women should have the vote, was friends with Annie Oakley, and worked tirelessly to promote the sporting life in Maine. Over a hundred turn-of-the-century photographs create a fascinating picture of the Maine woods and one of Maine's most unusual women.

This volume of the Sports She Wrote series features 139 articles written by women about fishing in the 19th century, proving the significant contributions of women anglers in the Victorian era. Sara McBride, renowned for her knowledge of the attraction between fish and insects, is prominently featured, including her seminal work on the metaphysics of fishing. McBride's artistic mastery and business acumen in the fly-tying industry are highlighted, underscoring women's proficiency in this field. Following McBride's articles, 25 women authors, including Mary Orvis Marbury, chronicle their fishing adventures, offering insights into angling for trout, bass, salmon, muskies, and more, in such diverse locales as Norway, Syria, California, Florida and Iowa. The latter half of the book pays homage to Cornelia T. Crosby, aka "Fly Rod" Crosby, Maine's esteemed fisherwoman. Divided into two parts, her articles span from 1884 to 1900, showcasing her adventurous spirit and profound impact on fishing, hunting, and conservation efforts in Maine. Crosby's legacy as a trailblazing outdoorswoman and promoter of field sports endures as a testament to her indomitable spirit. Sports She Wrote is a 31-volume time-capsule of primary documents written by more than 400 women in the 19th century.

“Many of us probably would be better fishermen if we did not spend so much time watching and waiting for the world to become perfect.”-Norman Maclean Though Maclean writes of an age-old focus of all anglers—the day’s catch—he may as well be speaking to another, deeper accomplishment of the best fishermen and fisherwomen: the preservation of natural resources. Backcasts celebrates this centuries-old confluence of fly fishing and conservation. However religious, however patiently spiritual the tying and casting of the fly may be, no angler wishes to wade into rivers of industrial runoff or cast into waters devoid of fish or full of invasive species like the Asian carp. So it comes as no surprise that those who fish have long played an active, foundational role in the preservation, management, and restoration of the world’s coldwater fisheries. With sections covering the history of fly fishing; the sport’s global evolution, from the rivers of South Africa to Japan; the journeys of both native and nonnative trout; and the work of conservation organizations such as the Federation of Fly Fishers and Trout Unlimited, Backcasts casts wide. Highlighting the historical significance of outdoor recreation and sports to conservation in a collection important for fly anglers and scholars of fisheries ecology, conservation history, and environmental ethics, Backcasts explores both the problems anglers and their organizations face and how they might serve as models of conservation—in the individual trout streams, watersheds, and landscapes through which these waters flow.

This long-awaited book is both a history of the woman and the region, as well as a guide to the Stevens method. It includes color plates of original patterns, some only recently discovered, along with a biography illustrated with archival photos.

A provocative new reading of the great American avant-garde arist Marsden Hartley's late work.