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Hiram Leonard
(Hiram Lewis Leonard, Sebec, 23 June 1831 - Central Valley, 1907)
 Hiram Leonard's contribution to bamboo rod making and fly fishing are enormous.
It suffice to say that W.Edwards, E.Payne (the father of the more famous Jim Payne), Hiram e Loman Hawes (the Hawes Brothers), Fred E Thomas, Bob Taylor, Eustis William Edwards, George Varney, Fred Divine, Goodwin Granger , not to mention the reel makers Julius e Edward Vom Hofe (and the Conroy Co. reels manufacturers) were employees of Leonard. Even Dr. George Parker Holden (author of the 1920 book, Idyl of the Split Bamboo ) was an occasional learner in Leonard's factory
Dr. Holden's book influenced in turn the life of Edmund Everett Garrison whose work and technical approach were superbly illustrated in Hoagy B. Carmichael's book .
Bob Summers, and Walt Carpenter, were working With Jim Payne whose father Ed was a Leonard employee.
Harold Steel “Pinky” Gillum, was a disciple of E.W. Edwards, another Leonard employee...
So Hiram Leonard is really the grandfather, so to say, of many rod makers of our days.
Hiram Leonard's merits were not only those of a superior craftsmanship and inventiveness (e.g. he patented better ferrules) but also of business acumen. And the time was right. The industrial revolution started more or less in the same period when he began his activity as a rod maker - quite causally - as he candidly admitted at the end of his life. In his factory one of the first beveler machines was created. "Easier - faster - more" was for instance the printing industry motto in the last part of the 19th century, and probably Leonard got the same impulse from those years when the first important "modern life" conquests and scientific discoveries - which seems so normal to us today - were made.
Winslow Homer, 1894, Casting (Adirondack Area)
(picture from the National Gallery of Art's 2008 exhibition, Washington)
Here a summary of Hiram Leonard's life
| 23 June 1831 |
Hiram Leonard is born in Sebec, Massachusset from a father descendant of the Mayflower's pilgrims and from Hanna Blood |
| 1840 |
Moved to Ellenville, N.Y and then to Honsdale, Pensylvania. His father was building oar in ash and so they had to move to better location for suitable wood. The father died soon after the arrival in Pensylvania |
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Studied engineering, often self-taught |
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Worked for the Pensylvania Coal Co. but the coal fumes made him sick and so he moved back to Bangor, Maine where he healed and began an activity as gunsmith (in partnership with Francis J. Philbrook, a skilled fine metalsmith who manufactured important fishing reels later on) and a fur trader and taxidermist. |
| 1858 |
Married with Elisabeth S. Head and had a daugther, Anna Cora who later married with a distant cousin Hiram Webster Hawes, who became one of his employee and a famous rodmaker. |
| 1869 |
It's Hiram Leonard himself who wrote that he built his first wood rod in this year (the wood was ash and lancewood) "I made my first rod in Bangor MA. Material used was ash and lancewood. I made it for my own use, not intending to make a business of rod manufacturing. I, however, sent it to Bradford & Anthony (in Boston, MA)... being advised to do so by a friend of theirs." The manager of Bradford & Anthony asked him if he knew how to make split bamboo rods and so he introduced him to the art. |
| 1871 |
Opened up a business, Leonard and Co., along the Main Road in Bangor, MA and manufactured rods for Bradford & Anthony, the first year completely on his own. |
| 1871? |
Hiram Leonard Changed business partner and manufactured mainly salmon rods for Andrew Clerk in New York. (Andrew Clerk became Abbie & Imbrie on January 1875.) |
| 1873 |
Leonards stops the gunsmith activity and becomes rodsmith exclusively.
First Employee of the H.L.Leonard Co. Later got 7 employees (1873?) |
| 1875 |
Moved business to Hammond Street 7, Bangor, MA.
12 employees (11 men and 1 woman) |
| 1876 |
See picture above, Leonard sent this stketch to the Scribner's Monthly for the article "Notes on salmon fishing" by Dr. A.G.Wilkinson. Picture with Courtesy of Cornell University) |
| 26 October 1875 |
New ferrule Patent, #169181 |
| 1876 |
One of the first beveler machines to speed up production is created by two of his employes (and cousins), Hiram and Loman Hawes (the Hawes brothers)
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| 1877 |
Philbrook and Edward Fletcher Payne got a patent for a new fishing reel which is then sold to Leonard. In 2003, a Christies auction in Boston estimated at $16'000 -$20'000 such a reel wich had the a pre-Leonard ownership mark : "Philbrook & Paine, Maker -- Pat. Apld. For"
One, still unidentified, Mr Hidder or Kidder gets involved with the Leonard and Co. (in his 1905 letter wrote "in 1877 went in company with Mr Hidder of Boston).
Stopped relations with Abbie & Imbrie? |
| 3 September 1878 |
Improved Ferrule Patent, #297665 |
| 1878 |
Kidder sells his shares to the large New York City store William Mills & Son in Manhattan |
| 1881 |
Company moved to Central Valley, N.Y. until 1985 |
| 1889 |
Fishing reels were built in the factory, now were made by skilled workers such as Julius e Edward Von Hofe, and the Conroy Co. |
| 1894 |
"We recommend a light one-say five to eight ounce. In material and workmanship, the Leonard "split bamboo" is regarded the sine qua non among fly-rods. The Divine split bamboo, seems also to have nearly all the requisites of a perfect rod. There are others of perhaps equall excellence."
(p. 470; Wallace, Edwin R. (1894) "Descriptive guide to the Adirondacks, (land of the thousand lakes) and to Saratoga Springs; Schroon Lake; Lakes Luzerne, George, and Champlain; the Ausable Chasm; the Thousand Islands; Massena Springs; and Trenton Falls" - Syracuse, N.Y. W. Gill) Courtesy Cornell university |
| 1907 |
Hiram Leonard dies |
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Thomas Bates Mills assume the leadership of the company. William Mills and Son is a New York City sporting goods store. |
| 1964 |
A fire completely destroys the factory, including the stock bamboo culms and the original beveler made by the Hawes brothers. This event is so important that collectors sometimes refer to the Leonard's rods as pre- or after- the fire. |
1984
2009 |
Alternating but decling history of the Leonard rods. Here an excerpt ffrom the Fly Fishing Dictionary by Nobuyuki Kawano
"Although H.L. Leonard Company continued producing quality rods, the factory was attacked by fire in 1964 and all were burned down. Despite the effort for recovery after that, the company was sold in 1976 to Johnson and Sun Co., Inc. which was in the wax manufacturing industry. Between 1977 and 1982, Thomas (Tom) Maxwell worked for the Leonard Company, and outstanding dry fly action rods were produced. Thereafter, the company continued declining, all the machines and materials were put on auction in 1985, and Leonard's rod building history has ended. The influence of Leonard company on bamboo rod building history is quite large. Its technology and knowledge has been inherited to Sam Carlson, Walt Carpenter, Ron Kusse, Bob Taylor, Marc Aroner, Thomas (Tom) Dorsey, Tom Moran, Per Brandin, and Robert Gorman."
And here (source: Rod Kuss,www.flyanglersonline.com/features/bamboo/part124.html)
"The Leonard Rod Company was closed by the Internal Revenue Service in 1984 for non-payment of the excise tax. "
Today, the Leonard Rod Company has re-opened business; "It is our purpose at Leonard to link the old and the new - to offer our customers traditional excellence of workmanship plus efficient and personalized service. We hope you will help us to achieve this goal by letting us fill all of your fishing needs."
Leonard rods website
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Updated (november 2009)
Around Hiram Leonards, whom reportedly loved to share his knowledge, gathered pupils who became legendary rod makers such as Reuben Leonard (his nephew) , the Hawes brothers, Edward Payne, Fred Divine, Eutis "Billy" Edwards, Thomas Chubb, and Fred Thomas (from the Fly Fishing Dictionary by Nobuyuki Kawano)
| Hiram Lewis Leonard |
| Life |
23 June 1831 - 1907 |
| Period of activity |
1871 - 1907? - present (with interrumptions) |
| Markings |
Rods made from types of wood (ash, lancewood), Calcutta bamboo first, Tonkin Bamboo later; first rods have primitive but well made ferrules (female ferrule is reinforced at the top, the male ferrule is wrapped till the shoulder), then beautiful new ferrules with patent number(s); number of strips (4,6,8,12); cork or rattan grips; shape of grips |
| Maker stamping |
- 1871 probably all went under the name of Bradford and Anthony
- 1871-1877 6 and 12 strips salmon rods under the Clerck label, export to UK.
- 1873? "H. L.Leonard - Maker" with and S scroll on both sides of "maker". Beautiful uncommon ferrule. High quality metal parts.
- 1871? - 1877? "H.Leonard /maker/Abbey and Imbrie/N.York/Sole Agents"
- 1877? - 1879? "H.L.Leonard /Maker/Bangor Maine"
- 1879 -1885-7? "H-L.Leonard/Maker/W.Mills & Son/N.York/Sole Agents"
- 1885-7? "The / H.L.LEONARD / ROD / LEONARD & MILLS CO / MAKERS"
- 1907? - 1927 "THE / LEONARD / ROD / H.L. LEONARD ROD CO / MAKERS"
- 1927 "THE / LEONARD / ROD / H.L. LEONARD ROD CO / MAKERS/Reg. U.S. PAT. OFF."
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From a Lang's auction 2007 catalogue
Scarce "H.L. Leonard - Pat. No 191813" Marked Bi-Metal Trout
Reel. Constructed with a bronze frame, nickel silver foot and
handle and aluminum spool, this 2 3/8" dia., 1" wide spool reel is
the third and final version of this classic trout reel.Made by Julius
Vom Hofe,with oversized hard rubber handle grasp and screw off
rear bearing cap, this clearly marked example is in terrific condition.
The riveted click is strong and the slightly modified foot has
the tell tale Julius Vom Hofe hole in the center. ($2,000-$3,000)
Scarce "H.L. Leonard - Pat. No 191813" Marked Hard Rubber
and German Silver Trout Reel.With raised pillar German silver
frame and German silver fittings, this 3" dia., 7/8" wide spool reel
is clearly marked on the near mark free hard rubber insert.With
protective rim and counter balanced handle, rear sliding click
switch, full length foot with small hole in the center and knurled
removable end cap, this wonderful looking reel is in fantastic
original condition. ($2,500-$3,500)
9' Leonard "Tournament" Trout Rod. This 3/2 pre-fire rod has
been restored to original condition with honey wraps and black
tipping. One tip is short 4 1/2". The ferrules carry the patent dates
and it has the all nickel silver sliding band reel seat with
"Tournament" stamping. A few cork rings show signs of ridging.
Original bag and tube. ($450-$500)
Pre-Fire Leonard Model #40. This light weight 3/2 rod is in
good condition with all sections full, except one tip is 1" short
and missing its tip top. The varnish has a few dings and scuff
marks. It has deep red wraps, truncated (short) ferrules, and a cap
& ring reel seat with white cedar spacer. The cap is marked: "H.L.
Leonard Rod Co." and "Reg. U.S. Pat. Off." It weighs 3 1/2oz and
comes with the original bag with tag and tube. ($1,300-$1,500)
9' Leonard Duracane Salmon Rod. This 3/1 impregnated rod is
in excellent condition, with brown wraps tipped black and a
ceramic stripper guide. Marked Model #908 and serial #2926.
The ferrules fit nicely. With original bag and tube. ($400-$500)
9' Leonard Trout Rod. This nicely restored 3/2 rod has Payne
brown wraps and intermediates with black tipping at the guides.
The original early agate stripper was re-used but the snake guides
are new. The ferrules are patent-dated and fit fine. It has a full
nickel silver reel seat with sliding band and is stamped: "H.L.
Leonard Rod Co., Makers". The fancy signature wraps were
restored, making this a very attractive rod. All sections are full
and straight. It has the original canvas sack and tip tube with tip
bag. ($450-$500)
From Hiram Leonard back to main old bamboo rods webpage
Top Picture used with Courtesy of Cornell University Library, Making of America Digital Collection
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