OUR ORIGINS
How Arkansas Fly Fishers Came to Be
A story of friendship, Arkansas waters, and a shared passion for fly fishing.
THE LATE 1960s
When Fly Fishers Were Hard to Find
In the late 1960s, encountering another fly fisher on an Arkansas trout stream was something worth noticing.
Fly fishers were still relatively uncommon on the White, Norfork and Little Red rivers. When two happened to cross paths, they often stopped to talk—about the water, the fishing, the flies they were using, and where else they might find trout.
Those chance meetings helped create a small community of Arkansas anglers.
And one of those meetings would eventually lead to the formation of the Arkansas Fly Fishers.
Dave Whitlock, one of the founders of Arkansas Fly Fishers.
1969
A Meeting on the Water
In 1969, Frank Brown of Little Rock met Dave Whitlock of Midway while fishing. What began as a chance meeting on an Arkansas trout stream became a friendship built around their shared interest in fly fishing and Arkansas waters.
Brown later credited Whitlock with the idea of forming a Federation of Fly Fishers club in Central Arkansas. Their friendship helped connect other fly fishers who were beginning to find one another on Arkansas waters—and the idea of a club began to take shape.
AN IDEA TAKES SHAPE
From Fishing Partners to a Fly-Fishing Community
Brown and Whitlock were not alone. The chance encounters taking place on Arkansas trout streams were connecting anglers who shared an interest in fly fishing, conservation and the state's growing trout fisheries.
As the group grew, the idea became more formal. Brown, Whitlock and fellow Arkansas fly fisher Jim Wingfield began laying the groundwork for an organization where anglers could share what they knew, learn from one another and support the waters and fisheries they valued.
By 1973, the idea was ready to become a club.
1973
Arkansas Fly Fishers Is Born
Four years after Brown and Whitlock met on the water, Arkansas Fly Fishers became a reality. In 1973, Frank Brown, Dave Whitlock and Jim Wingfield founded the club in Little Rock.
The organization began modestly. About 10 to 12 members gathered for monthly meetings at St. Michael's Episcopal Church. Jim Wingfield of Prescott served as AFF's first president.
Charter member Rusty Russell drafted the club's constitution, drawing on the constitution of the Federation of Fly Fishers and its guiding principles: Conserve, Restore, Educate.
Early Arkansas Fly Fishers logo
WHAT THEY STARTED
More Than a Club
What began with a handful of anglers meeting in Little Rock grew into a community that has lasted for more than five decades.
The names and faces have changed, but much of what brought those first members together remains familiar: time on the water, knowledge freely shared, friendships formed through fishing, and a desire to leave Arkansas waters better than they found them.
Today's Arkansas Fly Fishers is the continuation of that community.
REMEMBERING DAVE WHITLOCK
A Life on the Water
Dave Whitlock helped bring Arkansas Fly Fishers into being in 1973, but his influence reached far beyond the club he helped establish. An artist, author, fly designer, teacher, and conservationist, Dave inspired generations of anglers through his knowledge, creativity, and love of fly fishing.
Fishing With Dave Whitlock, a film by AFF member Ron Blome, celebrates Dave's life and the remarkable legacy he left to the fly-fishing community.
FUN AND FELLOWSHIP
Fun and fellowship through fly fishing.
From those first chance meetings on Arkansas trout streams to the club that exists today, fellowship has remained at the heart of Arkansas Fly Fishers.