Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/433799
S P O R T I N G C L A S S I C S 8 7 imprint three rare turkey-hunting classics—E. A. McIlhenny's The Wild Turkey and Its Hunting, Simon Everitt's Tales of Wild Turkey Hunting, and Henry Edwards Davis' The American Wild Turkey—were reprinted. Williams would later buy out his partners and reprint a fourth volume, the original, unexpurgated version of Tom Turpin's Hunting the Wild Turkey. Less well known is Lovett's work as a callmaker, but he made highly functional and aesthetically appealing two-piece wingbone yelpers. Quite small, these calls are particularly effective for kee-keeing and producing high, keen notes of the type associated with young hens. They are already considered collector's items. Then there was Lovett Williams the hunter. He began hunting turkeys as a college undergraduate, and in my eyes one of many characteristics separating him from other wildlife biologists was his extraordinary hunting skill. Unquestionably hours without end in blinds observing turkeys in pre-Thermacell days of mosquito purgatory helped mold him as a hunter but so did infinite patience, superior woodscraft, and that indefinable but all too real "feel" for the sport that truly defines a genuine turkey man. Viewed from any of these perspective—author, wildlife biologist, photographer, student of natural history, videographer, researcher, camp cook, or hunter—Dr. Lovett E. Williams Jr. was a master. Yet those aspects of his career that I was privileged to know personally, although undeniably impressive, form only part of the whole picture. He was also a leader in pioneering hunts for the ocellated subspecies, a man dedicated to working with indigenous peoples to help them use wildlife resources to improve their way of living, a mentor to aspiring biologists, and a shrewd entrepreneur. It is my studied opinion that in the sweeping compass of turkey hunting's rich history, no single individual has had an impact comparable to that of Williams. He was a treasure who left us with scientific and literary legacies beyond measure. Those who cherish the lure and lore of turkey hunting are forever in his debt. Note: Jim Casada is a longtime student of turkey hunting's history and the men who have been key figures in the sport's evolution. Much of his research along those lines is incorporated in his latest book, Remembering the Greats: Profiles of Turkey Hunting's Old Masters. Inscribed and signed copies of this book, along with hundreds of out-of-print works on the sport, are available at www. jimcasadaoutdoors.com.