Sylvester Nemes Papers,

Transcription

1 Overview of the Collection Creator Nemes, Sylvester Title Sylvester Nemes Papers Dates Quantity 15 linear feet Collection Number Collection 2576, MtBC, us (collection) Summary The Sylvester Nemes Papers consists of research, notes, drafts and manuscripts of Nemes' books, both his published works on fly fishing, as well as two unpublished works of historical fiction. Also included in the collection are correspondence, a brief biography, miscellaneous personal records, his obituary, business and professional records, photographs, negatives, memorabilia, and slides. Repository Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections Montana State University-Bozeman Library Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections P.O. Box Bozeman, MT Telephone: Fax: spcoll@ Access Restrictions This collection is open for research. Languages English Biographical Note Sylvester Nemes was born on April 2, 1922 in Erie, Pennsylvania. His parents, Dominic Nemes and Pauline Angel, were Romanian. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, where he was introduced to fly tying by a friend and mentor, and traveled frequently to Pennsylvania with his homemade flies to fish the rivers and streams there. Nemes enlisted in the Army at age 19 as the U.S. was entering World War II. He was stationed at the Ibsley Air Field in Hampshire, England as a member of the Fighter Control Squadron with the Eighth Air Force. While stationed, he was set up on a blind date with Hazel Mary Barclay, an English nursing student. Nemes landed at Omaha Beach on D-Day, staying there for nine months as part of a team directing fighter aircraft. When he returned to England, he married Hazel on March 17, 1945 in Southampton, Hampshire. After the war, Hazel and Sylvester's first child, Diana, was born in England. The family moved to the U.S. where their second and third children, Eric and Gregory, were born. While the couple raised their family, Nemes earned a bachelor's degree in English from Kent State University. He went on to work as a copy writer and a photographer in Cleveland, Detroit, and Chicago. Nemes, Hazel, and their children moved to Crown Point, Indiana in 1961, where Nemes worked as a photojournalist and continued to cultivate his love of fly fishing. 1

2 Nemes published his first book in 1975 through Chatham Press. The Soft-Hackled Fly championed wet fly fishing and the beauty and utility of flies tied with bird feathers in an era when dry fly fishing was the dominant trend. In the book he details the history of the soft-hackled fly and gives instruction on tying them and using them in fishing. Nemes went on to become a prolific author on the subject of fly fishing, writing Learn How to Fly Fish in One Day (1986), Soft-Hackled Imitations (1991), The Soft-Hackled Fly: A Trout Fisherman's Guide (1993), The Soft-Hackled Fly Addict (1993), Spinners (1995), Six Months in Scotland: an American View of its Salmon Fishing (1998), Two Centuries of Soft-Hackled Flies: a Survey of the Literature With Original Patterns, 1747-Present (2004), and The Soft-Hackled Fly and Tiny Soft Hackles: a Trout Fisherman's Guide (2006). He wrote two unpublished novels: "Goodbye, Crown Point," about John Dillinger, the Depression-era bank robber, and an unnamed manuscript about World War II-era P38 fighter aircraft pilots. Hazel and Sylvester moved to San Francisco in the early eighties before settling in Bozeman, Montana, at the base of the Bridger Mountains, in Nemes continued to fish, create his own fly patterns, and write books. He had admirers as far-flung as Japan, where fans of his started a fly fishing club devoted to the use of the soft hackle, and a Nemesbranded fly fishing rod was produced and sold. He was honored by Trout Unlimited in Bozeman in 2008 with their Legends of the Headwaters award. Nemes died at home on February 3, 2011 outside of Bozeman. Content Description The bulk of this collection is made up of the research, notes, drafts and manuscripts of Nemes' books, both his published works on fly fishing, as well as two unpublished works of historical fiction. This portion of the collection is largely typed pages and handwritten notes in spiral-bound notebooks, but also some galleys and artwork. There is also a large amount of correspondence, mainly from readers and fans of his work expressing their admiration for Nemes, and ordering books and hand-tied flies from him. Biographical material is limited to a few folders which include family correspondence, a brief biography, miscellaneous personal records, and his obituary. Nemes' business and professional records are mainly comprised of correspondence with publishers, book and fly orders and invoices, and other records related to the writing and publishing of his books. In the final series there are photographs, negatives, memorabilia, and several binders of slides taken by Nemes of flies, landscapes in the West and in England and Scotland, fish and rivers, and friends and family. Administrative Information Arrangement Series 1 Biographical material Series 2 Business and Professional Records Series 3 Correspondence Series 4 Book Manuscripts, Drafts, and Book-Specific Research Series 5 General Research and Notes Series 6 Photographs, Slides, and Memorabilia Acquisition Information 2

3 The Sylvester Nemes Papers consists of research, notes, drafts and manuscripts of Nemes' books, both his published works on fly fishing, as well as two unpublished works of historical fiction. Also included in the collection are correspondence, a brief biography, miscellaneous personal records, his obituary, business and professional records, photographs, negatives, memorabilia, and slides. Processing Note This collection was processed 2014 March 10 Detailed Description of the Collection Series 1: Biographical material This small series contains a print of a portrait of Sylvester Nemes, some family correspondence, a short biography written on Nemes in the mid-1980s, and Nemes' obituary from the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Container(s) Description Dates Box/Folder 1/1 Nemes Portrait /2 Biography 1980s /3 Correspondence undated; 1995; /4 Miscellaneous Personal Records Series 2: Business and Professional Records This series contains all records pertaining to Nemes' professional life (excluding any book manuscript material, artwork or research, which is contained in Series 4). Included are wholesale book orders, royalty reports, receipts from travels to Europe, publisher correspondence with Stackpole Books and Chatham Press, book publicity materials, and articles written by and articles written about Nemes. Legal agreements, including an agreement to produce a Nemes-branded fishing rod in Japan, are also found in this series. Container(s) Description Dates Box/Folder 2/1 Awards/Certificates /2 Organizations

4 Container(s) Description Dates 2/3 Articles by Nemes 1975; undated 2/4 Articles about Nemes /5 Book Reviews/Press /6 Book Publicity ; /7 Book Publicity Mailings /8 Book/Fly Orders /9-10 The Soft Hackled Fly Orders from Magazine Ad 2/11 Fly Fishing Heritage /12 Fly Fisherman's Library 1982; undated 2/13 Fly Fisherman Magazine /1 Fly Fisherman Japan Edition 1983; undated 3/2 English Correspondence/Research ; undated 3/3 Trip to England/Fishing in England ; undated 3/4 Trip to Scotland ; undated 3/5-6 Stackpole Books - Correspondence /7 Stackpole Books - Royalty Statements, Invoices /8 General Publisher Correspondence /9 Publishing Agreements ; undated 3/10 Title Page Proofs undated 4

5 Container(s) Description Dates 3/11 Submission to Barnes and Noble /12 English Publisher Correspondence /13 Chatham Press /14 Chatham Press /15 Goodbye Crown Point - Publisher Search /16 Publisher Price Quotes /1 Miscellaneous Invoices/Receipts (Incoming) /2 Nemes-Branded Japanese Rod /3 Modern Imaging Dispute /4 Copyright Registration /5 Color World Printers /6 Umpqua Feather Merchants /7 Transcribed Tapes 1975; /8 Brochures and Catalogs /9 Fly Fishing Dictionary /10 Business Correspondence ; undated 4/11 General Articles and Newspaper Clippings ; undated 4/12 Miscellaneous Business Records 4/13 Spinners - Trademark Series 3: Correspondence 5

6 The bulk of letters are fan mail from Nemes' readers, who wrote to order books and flies as well as to ask for fishing and fly tying advice. Some sent Nemes examples of their hand crafted flies along with their letters (all flies can be found in Series VI). Outgoing Correspondence contains copies of all correspondence written by Nemes that is not contained in Series 2, folders 2 and 5-8. Incoming correspondence is arranged alphabetically by last name, while outgoing correspondence is arranged by year. All photographic material has been placed in Series 6. Container(s) Description Dates Incoming Box/Folder 5/1-2 A 5/3 B 5/4-6 B 6/1-2 B 6/3-6 C 6/7 D 7/1 D 7/2 E 7/3-4 F 7/5-6 G 7/7-8 H 8/1-3 H 8/4 I 8/5 J 8/6-8 K 8/9 L 6

7 Container(s) Description Dates 9/1-2 L 9/3-6 M 10/1 N 10/2 O 10/3-5 P 10/6 Q 10/7 R 11/1-2 R 11/3-6 S 11/7 T 12/1 T 12/2 U 12/3 V 12/4-5 W 12/6 Y 12/7 Z 12/8-9 No Last Name 12/10 Letter Fragments Outgoing Box/Folder 13/

8 Container(s) Description Dates 13/ / / / / / /8 undated Series 4: Book Manuscripts, Drafts, and Book-Specific Research Contains drafts, manuscripts, galleys, and artwork for Nemes' books, along with research (copies of articles and typed and handwritten notes) directly related to the writing of a book, arranged by book. Contains what appears to be a very early draft (circa 1973) of The Soft-Hackled Fly. All articles and notes written by Nemes that could not be identified as part of one of his literary projects have been placed in Series 5. Container(s) Description Box/Folder 14/1-9 Soft Hackled Fly Manuscript 14/10 Soft Hackled Fly - Title Page 14/11 Soft Hackled Fly - Intro to New Edition 14/12 Soft Hackled Fly - Folder Notes 14/13-14 Learn How to Fly Fish - Drafts 14/15 Learn How to Fly Fish - Artwork 14/16 Learn How to Fly Fish - Artwork [see box 32] 15/1 Learn How to Fly Fish: Drafts 8

9 Container(s) Description 15/2 Learn How to Fly Fish: Artwork 15/3 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Handwritten Notes 15/4 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Notes 15/5-11 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Drafts 15/12 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Artwork [see box 32] 16/1-3 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Manuscript 16/4 D. Hughes Soft Hackled Fly Imitations Introduction 16/5 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Artwork 16/6-8 Soft Hackled Fly Imitations - Galleys 16/9 Spinners - Book Proposal 16/10 Spinners - Notes 17/1-7 Spinners - Drafts 18/1-7 Spinners - Drafts 18/8 Spinners - Artwork 19/1 Scotland Travel 19/2 Scotland Travel 19/3 Scotland Travel 19/4-7 Scotland Articles and Research 20/1 United Kingdom Articles and Newspaper Clippings 20/2 Six Months in Scotland - Chapter Ideas 20/3-9 Six Months in Scotland - Drafts 9

10 Container(s) Description 20/10 Six Months in Scotland (?) - Drafts 20/11 Six Months in Scotland - Artwork 21/1 Two Centuries of Soft Hackled Flies - Handwritten Notes 21/2-7 Two Centuries of Soft Hackled Flies - Articles 21/8-10 Two Centuries of Soft Hackled Flies - Manuscript 22/1-5 Two Centuries of Soft Hackled Flies - Manuscript 22/6-8 Two Centuries of Soft Hackled Flies - Galleys 23/1 Tiny Soft Hackles - Notebooks 23/2 Tiny Soft Hackles - Research 23/3-4 Tiny Soft Hackles - Manuscript 23/5-6 P38 Novel - Notes 23/7-9 P38 Novel - Articles and Research 23/10 P38 Novel - Articles and Research [see box 32] 24/1 P38 Novel - Drafts 24/2 P38 Novel - Manuscript 24/3-10 Goodbye, Crown Point - Dillinger Articles 25/1-3 Goodbye, Crown Point - Dillinger Articles 25/4-5 Goodbye, Crown Point - Notes 25/6-8 Goodbye, Crown Point - Manuscript 26/1-8 Goodbye, Crown Point - Manuscript 27/1-9 Goodbye, Crown Point - Manuscript 10

11 Container(s) Description 28/1 Goodbye, Crown Point - Manuscript 28/2 Goodbye, Crown Point - Manuscript Sample 28/3 Unidentified Manuscript - Soft Hackled Fly Origins/Tarpon Story 28/4 Unidentified Manuscript - Fishing the Soft Hackled Fly 28/5 Unidentified Manuscript - Fishing the Soft Hackled Fly in Big Rivers 28/6 Unidentified Manuscript - Fishing Soft Hackles 28/7 Unidentified Manuscript - Soft Hackled Fly Writing 28/8 Unidentified Manuscript - Fiction Manuscript Series 5: General Research and Notes Spiral-bound notebooks, loose papers, and legal pads of handwritten notes and photocopies of articles kept by Nemes for various writing projects. Container(s) Description Box/Folder 28/9 Entomological Society of London Articles 28/10 Entomology Articles 28/11-16 Handwritten Notes 29/1-6 Handwritten Notes 30/1-6 Handwritten Notes 31/1-4 Handwritten Notes 32/1-5 Handwritten Notes 32/6 History of Elementary Schools - Articles 11

12 Series 6: Photographs, Slides, and Memorabilia Color photographs of Sylvester Nemes with family and friends, readers' photos sent to Nemes, 3x5 negatives of fly tying, and several binders of slides taken of various subjects. Some binders were labeled by Nemes, the rest are labeled in brackets, and are mainly comprised of images of flies, rivers, Nemes, the English and Scottish countryside, and western landscapes. This series also includes a small collections of flies (mostly those sent to Nemes by readers), his Legend of the Headwaters award, and a framed photo with mounted flies from a Japanese fishing club. Container(s) Description Dates Box/Folder 32/7 Photos: S. Nemes, #1-7 32/8 Photos: S. Nemes and Others, # /9 Photos: Unidentified people, # /10 Photos: Miscellaneous fishing-related, # /11 Photos: Normandy map, # /12 Photos: Fly tying, #25-37 (Tying leader to fly, #25-27, Blood knot, #28-37) 32/13 Negatives: Flies, # /14 Negatives: Fly tying, # /15 Negatives: Fishing/casting, # /16 Negatives: Horses, # /17 Photo: Federation of Fly Fishers Conclave, #86 August /1 Flies 33/2 Legend of the Headwaters plaque /3 Framed photograph of Soft Hackles, a Japanese fishing club, along with flies 2006 Slide binders 12

13 Container(s) Description Dates Box-item 34/1 Spinners /2 Spinners /3 Spinners /4 Spinners /5 Two Centuries /6 Scotland undated 34/7 Scotland ; undated 35/8 [Various] /9 [Various] /10 [Various] /11 [Various] /12 [Various] /13 [Various] /14 Mixed /15 [Various] Names and Subjects Subject Terms : Americans Americans -- England Fishers Fishers -- Montana Fly fishing Fly fishing 13

14 Fly tyers Fly tyers -- Montana Fly tying Fly tying Military operations, Aerial -- American Publishers and publishing Publishers and publishing -- United States Travel World War, Aerial operations, American -- Fiction Personal Names : Nemes, Sylvester -- Archives Nemes, Sylvester Corporate Names : World War ( ) Geographical Names : Bozeman (Mont.) England England -- Description and travel Montana Montana -- Bozeman Scotland Scotland -- Description and travel United States United States, West West (U.S.) -- Description and travel Form or Genre Terms : Archives Fiction Personal papers -- Montana -- Bozeman Photographs Kim Allen Scott,