The Shakespeare Company is world renowned for quality production of tackle equipment. William Henry Shakespeare applied for patent approval of his new fishing reel invention on May 13th, 1897. He was given approval for his fishing reel on October 5th, 1897. William's reel design was not the first to receive a patent. But, his was the first reel to be created with two level carriage bolts, that he used to hold the reel's encircled line-guide on a wedge to wind the line back onto the reel evenly while other reels designed during that time were made with a failed single thread. Shakespeare was given financial help by his father's bank to manufacture his reel for anglers all over the world and started his company in 1889. The era faced a daunting and difficult economy, nonetheless the Shakespeare Company successfully produced refined silver-plated reels using jewelry manufacturing tools the designer had owned from a prior business. The Shakespeare Company is world renowned for its construction of affordable quality reels, collectors who add Shakespeare reels to their collections, are confident in their reel's value. Shakespeare reels were also produced in Canada for Canadians by John Inglis Company from Toronto Ontario. After the war Inglis began crafting household items including fishing equipment. According to some, by 1947 Inglis apparently signed a contract with Shakespeare to begin crafting the famous Shakespeare brand reels. However, we have an Inglis made in Canada Shakespeare Light Wonder Reel 1921 Model GF with the diamond Inglis stamp, which dates our reel to 1945 well before 1947. It is our opinion that John Inglis and Shakespeare had an agreement in place years before 1947. It’s a true testament to the quality of Shakespeare reels whether made in the U.S.A or Canada by John Inglis Co, that all these years later the reels still work great, and some folks are still catching fish with them. For us we enjoy collecting them.