User talk:Mike Cline/Articles Under Contemplation/Hardy and Greys, Ltd

Hardy and Greys, Ltd is an Alnwick, Northumberland based fishing tackle manufacturer. Also known as the House of Hardy, the company was founded in 1872 in Alnwick by brothers William Hardy (1853-1917) and John James Hardy (1854-1932) as a gun and tinsmith. In 1874, the company began selling fishing tackle as the Hardy Brothers of Alnwick Ltd. In the early years, Hardy Brothers sold fishing tackle manufactured by other dealers. However, in the late 1880s, they began development of their own product lines are are credited with extensive innovations in fishing tackle. In 1891, they introduced the Hardy Perfect fly reel.

Hardy catalogues
Hardy published its first catalog in 1886. Hardy Brothers' Catalogues contained both product information and pricing as well as tackle and fishing advice. As an advertising medium, they contained a great many testimonials from prominent anglers of the time as well as the sporting press. They were published and distributed annually to anglers all over the world into the 1960s.