Here it is! After decades of searching, the article chronicling the creation of the first and only Black pure velifera and (likely) first Black velifera x latipinna Sailfin Molly strains in Florida in the mid-1930's. I had searched all the easily available literature of the period and all that existed in those sources were the ads selling these new fish. No articles. Finally, through Gary Bagnall's possession of the rare "Aquarium News" magazine of the period, I obtained the first known published record of these fish. (See below)

Albert Klee covered this story in his 1967 Pet Library book "Know How to Breed Your Egglayers" but he did not provide footnotes or a bibliography. For some reason, these exciting advancements in the early creation of the fabled Black Sailfin Molly strains in the 1930's are almost never included in the reports of their history. Al Klee is the only author that I am aware of who included this part of the story in his history. At most, William Sternke's creation of a Black velifera x latipinna Sailfin Molly around the same time is mentioned as Innes used his strain to make his Black Sailfin Molly painting for "Exotic Aquarium Fishes". Schaumburg's Black velifera x latipinna Sailfin Molly strain is also rarely mentioned even though it was announced and pictured in his full page front cover ads in "The Aquarium" magazine in the mid-30's.

As far as is known, no one else but Thompson created an all black pure Poecilia velifera in that era and it is doubtful such strains exist today even though velifera and velifera-based hybrids have been used in breeding Sailfin Mollies in Asia since the 1970's. It would be instructive to find out what happened to the black pure P. velifera strain as it appears it was gone by the 1940's.

These velifera x latipinna Black Sailfin Molly crosses - at least 3 - go a long way toward explaining and supporting the memories of the once great Black Sailfin Mollies old hobbyists often hold. Were the Black pure velifera Sailfins the real source of those "fish tales"? Certainly the pure latipinna Black Sailfin Mollies of the era were not responsible for the legends as their sailfins were nice but in no way equal to velifera's. - Bobby Ellerman, Sep. 20, 2020.