Some sad news.

That is sad news. I never met the man but know is name well. Maybe you can enlighten the folks here on the man, his collection and books.
 
A wealth of information no more to be shared and so a loss to all, including those collectors who never met him (including me) but who benefited from his knowledge (including me)
 
Bill joined the Muzzle Loaders Association of Great Britain in 1956, as member number 19, and was one of the longest serving members. He held various posts within the Association. He was a direct descendent of Sir William Curtis of 'Curtis & Harvey' gunpowder fame. He had a deep knowledge of Enfield Rifles, was an active participant in the revival of long range muzzle loading in the UK in the 1960s, had a passionate interest in and collection of Crimean War small arms, and an encyclopedic knowledge of black powder arms in general. For many many years he gathered data on Whitworth rifles and made a special study of them - his database of known original rifles runs to approaching 700 examples. I've known Bill for 20 years or so, corresponded with him, chatted with him and visited often - his council and friendship will be greatly missed. Covid related restrictions, and Bill's vulnerability due to advanced age, meant visits were somewhat curtailed last year. My wife and I did have the pleasure of taking Bill and Mary out to dinner this summer to mark their 60th wedding anniversary and Bill's 90th birthday.

I've been working on a Whitworth project with Bill, De Witt Bailey and Tom Rowe for some time. For the past year or so I have been maintaining his Whitworth rifle database. Bill shared his knowledge freely and quite a few of his writings can be found in my free download magazine, Research Press Journal.

David
 
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