George G. Matthews
1937 -
2010 Inductee
Throughout his life, George Matthews has given generously of his time and resources to numerous causes and organizations, but none has benefited more from his dedication and largesse than the International Game Fish Association. Matthews attended the Choate School in Connecticut and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but Palm Beach, Florida, has always been home. And it's hardly surprising since his great grandfather, Henry Morrison Flagler, is considered the town's founding father. More than a century ago, Flagler built the Florida East Coast Railway from Jacksonville to Key West and luxury hotels that attracted the nation's elite to the state. Continuing that family tradition, George has made his own indelible marks. The first in the family to take part in town politics, he served as councilman for 16 years, and at the age of 34 became the youngest council president in Palm Beach's history. Also in the 1970s he was appointed Everglades Region Commissioner of the Florida Game & Fresh Water Fish Commission by then-Governor Reuben Askew. George's love of the outdoors and the sporting life extends beyond committee meetings and boardrooms to the actual playing fields. Though he fished for many different species around the world, bluefin tuna was his passion, and he became an ardent and accomplished tuna angler. Bluefin happened to be the favorite of Elwood Harry too, and the two men became longtime fishing partners and lifelong friends. During the 1960s and 1970s, Matthews pursued these giants in the Bahamas and Canada, and was a frequent participant in the tournaments -- and the tournament festivities -- at the Bimini Big Game Fishing Club and the Cat Cay Club. George fished the prestigious Masters Angling Tournament six times, placing third in the 1970 event, and two International Tuna Cup Matches in Wedgeport, Nova Scotia. One day before the 1967 ITCM he landed a 735-pound bluefin while fishing on Capt. Fidelis Boudreau's Lady Luck. It was the first time George had fished Nova Scotia waters, and the tuna was the largest of the 53 he had landed to that time. Though that trophy fish didn't count in the tournament standings, the U.S. Team nevertheless went on to win it all that year. In the late 1960s Matthews made two memorable trips to Newfoundland. He and Harry were fishing Conception Bay in August 1968 when they received a radio call from Capt. Buddy Merritt reporting that another area -- Notre Dame Bay -- was "alive with tuna" and that they had "better get up here." They did, and with the two anglers taking turns in the fighting chair, over a seven-day period, they fought 78 giant bluefin and boated 57 of them, tagging most and releasing all. The next summer they hooked 139 bluefin, boating and releasing 107, tagging 70. According to Joe Brooks, who described the trips in a June 1970 Outdoor Life article, those amazing catches opened a new fishing ground for "one of the most mysterious giants of the salt." Even then George had concerns about the pressure on the species, and he became one of the first anglers -- and GGB ("George Gregory Betsy") one of the first boats -- to release bluefin in the early 1960s. In a letter dated February 26, 1971, IGFA President Bill Carpenter informed Matthews that he had been elected Vice-President and a member of the Executive Committee, and thus began George's long and distinguished association with the organization. He served as Chairman of the Board from 1992 to 2000 and continues in that capacity since being reappointed in 2003. It was during his first tenure that the IGFA Board of Trustees began serious deliberations about the location and design for its World Headquarters and Fishing Hall of Fame. As Co-Chair of the "Into the 21st Century" Campaign Cabinet, Matthews played a critical role in the successful fundraising, planning and construction of the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum, and in making the organization's dream a reality. To this day, his ongoing support enables the IGFA to embark on new programs and exhibits, and to maintain and improve its state-of-the-art facility. Matthews' civic and philanthropic interests are far-reaching. He serves as President of the Flagler Museum in Palm Beach, Florida's first museum and a National Historic Landmark. An avid hunter, he has made more than 25 safaris to Africa, and is active in the African Safari Club of Florida and the Shikar Safari Club International. For his indispensable role in preserving the sport, and ensuring the mission of the International Game Fish Association lives on, the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame -- with gratitude -- pays tribute to George Matthews.
