The Babcock has had several incarnations, the first
having no tail whatsoever. All subsequent versions
had tails, and I've done one of each, the Bergman fly
and the tailless original, (shown above).
The original fly was named after W.J. and Charles H.
Babcock, of Rochester, New York. W.J. was one of the
organizers of the National Sportsmen's Association in
1874. Charles H. served as Fish Commissioner of New York
state from 1885 to 1902.
The first fly had wings of white duck quill with a narrow
strip of black along the top. The body of this fly has
remained constant, and is red floss with a gold tinsel rib.
The newer version of the fly, shown in both the Bergman and
J.Edson Leonard books, is a vision of yellow and black, with
both wings and tail featuring married strands of yellow and
black quills.
Terry Hellekson, in his book Fish Flies, has
yet another version, sort of a hair-wing version of the
Bergman fly. It seems more Western to me, and I will call
it the Western version until corrected. Here are all the
recipes for the Babcock:
The Original Babcock
Ray Bergman's Babcock
Western Babcock (Hellekson)
Hooks: MUSR70, TMC3769, or DIA1550, sizes 8-14
Thread: Black.
Tail: Scarlet red hackle barbs.
Ribbing: Flat gold tinsel.
Body: Red floss.
Hackle: Black tied on as a collar and tied back and down.
Wing: Yellow calf tail tied over the body.
Topping: Three peacock sword feather barbs.
Credits: Fish Flies by Terry Hellekson;
Trout by Ray Bergman; Flies by J.
Edson Leonard. ~ EA
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