What was your fist bass on?
mine was on an J C Higgins rod and zebco reel with a tiny torpedo, it was 2.5lb at Lake Bistineau, La. around 1959, I had this rod and reel until my mother garage burn down in the late 80's

North lake, Tx 1970 smallmouth bass on large minner zebco 202 .

Purple worm Lake Allatoona

Mitchell spinning reel. Not sure of the rod. Coachdog jitterbug. First was a 12 inch bass in 1959. I was 8. Second was an 18 inch on the same jitterbug a month later. I was hooked. Caught a bunch of fish on that bug. Gravel pit in Windfall Indiana.

Mine was likely smallmouth in a stock tank on family land in South Dakota. Could have been largemouth. Don’t really remember. I only remember that I was probably around 6-7 yrs old and I was throwing a Mepps in-line spinner on a Zebco 202. Caught them almost every cast for days on end. I’d ride my little Indian motorcycle out across the pasture land and fish for hours. Then ride some and then go feed horses and stuff. Every summer was the same.

My father took me bluegill fishing with a bobber and nightcrawler. It was business as usual until I accidentally caught a tiny largemouth between 2-3 inches. My father who knows absolutely nothing about fishing tried to toss it back to "catch a bigger one" (lol), it hit a tree limb, and the little bass managed to free itself while it was dangling from the limb. That was over 25 years ago and I still remember it to this day.

hot dog

Johnson spincast,my dad bought it for me at A&P grocery store in Irving in 1959. Three years old caught my first bass that summer at lake Wilhelmina Arkansas.

Five pounder on a slider worm when I was 14 or 15. I was fishing with my uncle on a small pond.

1973 , my grandfathers pond in Iowa , smallmouth on a Heddon Hellbender in white coach dog pattern . The reel was a Zebco , not sure what type of rod .
Since my grandfather didn't think lures were useful , he always tried to encourage me to use live bait for all types of fishing .
That summer I used that hellbender all day , everyday and probably caught over a hundred smallmouth that summer .

Farm pond in Kentucky. Fiberglass fly rod with a yellow popping bug. 1963. Holy s___t I'm old!

I caught this 5 lb bass in lake Livingston 1972. I was 5. Zebco 202, caught it on a Cream pre rigged worm grape / fire tail. My grandfather bought the worm for me. I was hooked on bass fishing ever since!

Around ‘62, on an original Bomber, white with red head from a sand pit in Bmt Texas

First one I remember catching with a lure was with a Mitchell 300 and a chrome spoon I bought from the fishing department at Sears probably about 1970.

Probably on a purple/w pink tail mr. twister. On a farm pond in Ocean Springs MS.