Charles Barker Bradford

Charles Barker Bradford was an American sporting writer and editor born in Michigan on February 7, 1862, and he died in New York on November 12, 1917. Contemporary records describe him as editor of American Angler, and a newspaper obituary remembered him as a well-known angling writer with a wide practical knowledge of fishing.

His books focus on outdoor sport, especially fishing. Confirmed titles include Black Bass; Where to Catch Them in Quantity Within an Hour's Ride from New York (1888), The Brook Trout and the Determined Angler (1900), The Angler's Secret (1904), The Angler's Guide (1908), and The Wild Fowlers. Bibliographic records also show later editions of The Determined Angler and the Brook Trout, suggesting that his work continued to circulate after its first publication.

An obituary also notes that Bradford worked in the theatrical world as a press agent before or alongside his literary career. What stands out most, though, is the tone of his writing: practical, observant, and shaped by experience in the field, which helps explain why his outdoor books still attract readers interested in classic American sporting literature.