The future of Jacks web site
With Jack’s passing inevitably have come questions. People have been asking things like will the web site continue? Will Jack’s books still be available? Some of the questions I don’t know the answer to, but here’s what I do know:
Will the web site continue? Absolutely. Jack loved this site. He considered it the repository, the portfolio of his life’s work. He always said that he wanted it to continue after he was gone. And so it will. Working on jackgartside.com with Jack the past nine years has been one of the great experiences of my life. It goes without saying that things won’t be the same without him. But there is a lot of material that he’d never gotten around to publishing–stories, flies, advice, pictures, and jokes–material enough to hopefully keep jackgartside.com a fun and interesting place to visit for a long, long time. And it will always a place to connect with a great tyer, a good man, and a dear friend.
Are there any events or memorials to Jack planned? Jack left a number of items to the American Fly Fishing Museum in Manchester, Vermont, so I expect that in time they will have an exhibit of his work. I’ve heard that Montana legend and lifelong friend of Jack’s Bud Lilly has some plans. Also look for a piece by Dave Skok in an upcoming edition of The Drake magazine, and a piece by Ed Mitchell in an upcoming issue of Fly Fishing in Salt Waters. And if you haven’t already seen it, here’s a very nice tribute to Jack that appeared in the Boston Globe.
Regarding the American Fly Fishing Museum…Jack’s wishes included that any charitable donations in his name be made to the AFFM. They’re a great organization dedicated to preserving the heritage of American fly fishing. But like Jack they operate on a shoe string budget. So if you feel inclined to remember Jack through a donation please consider them.
Are Jack’s books and other merchandise still available? Jack’s books will continue to be available through jackgartside.com. Other things like tying materials and prints will likely be available but on a more limited basis. Some folks have asked about Jack’s flies… the answer there is, sadly, no. If you’re lucky enough to have some of Jack’s flies in your possession, my advice is to enjoy them, save a few as tying models, and with the rest go fishing. (By the way, if you placed an order on the web site in the past month and are wondering when you’ll receive it…first thanks for your patience…second, there’s been a delay while some accounts required to process orders get switched around, but that work will hopefully be complete this week. You’ll be hearing from me via email.)
Thanks everybody. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions please send them along.
Welcome to 
Dave Zeigler says:
January 12th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
Sad to hear about Jack’s passing. Will continue to visit this site, which is one of my favorites. Have been intrigued with his method of winding a mallard flank feather and despite his excellent descriptions of this, mine always look like a deep fried spider. Are there any videos of his doing this? (Have purchased all his pamphlets on this, but still no success.)
MikeQ says:
January 20th, 2010 at 10:02 pm
Dave, there just might be. I retrieved from Jack’s basement what seems like miles of Super8 and 16mm film. Getting it converted to digital will take awhile. But those videos will find their way onto here eventually.
Jack Harford says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Met Jack at Royal River Fly Shop in Indy a ways back. He spent the whole day in the shop tying flies and spinning yarns. There was something about his childlike creative genius that made his presentation interesting, inspiring, and funny. He simply seemed to really love what he was doing.
Dave Cull says:
January 23rd, 2010 at 7:43 pm
I met Jack at a flyfish meeting in Indy several years ago and set with him during dinner and visited. Talked about Boston since I had been in the Navy at Charleston Navy shipyard on the USS Boston. We had a great visit and during the meeting learned to tie some of his flies. Later I also met him again at the Royal Fly Shop in Indy. I ask him if the Hillbilly Ranch was still in Boston. A great bar for music. Three stages with bands playing all evening. Yep, big place. Sorry I never fished with you but great knowing you.
Martin Carranza says:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:18 am
I am really really happy to see that Jack’s website is still available. He’s the man, will always be and his work should always be available. We miss you Jack, look forward to see the flies you’re tying up there.
Dave Langan says:
July 18th, 2010 at 4:59 pm
It’s great to see Jack’s site lives on. He was a great guy and I have learned a lot from him. Now if I could only convince myself to fish something other than a beastmaster…..