Edward McDonald Whitaker, Sr.

Whit’s Flies

Whit History

Ed Whitaker was born in Norton, Virginia, on August 4, 1911. Ed moved to Florida when he was just a teenager. In the 1950’s, Ed considered joining Jim Bagley of Winter Haven and going into business. By this point, Whitaker was an experienced fly maker and his flies had become popular with local fishermen. Due to his popularity, he needed a way of producing his flies in bulk instead of one by one.

Before Whitaker made his choice of whether to join with Bagley, his wife told him she was expecting a child. This made him nervous and he decided to stay with his full time job for the benefits and security. He continued to make his flies as well as cast nets and they were sold regularly through tackle shops in central Florida and on the west coast of Florida in the Clearwater area. Edward McDonald Whitaker, Sr. passed away on September 22, 1995.

Much of the information on this page was obtained by utilizing the information provided by Doug Brace, Bill Stuart, and Russell Riddle in “Florida Lure Makers and Their Lures” (Currently out of print). The information we have provided is only a portion of the story.  If interested in purchasing this book, please reach out to other collectors in our forum to inquire about availability.

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