Creedmoor Rifle Range was sited on
Long Island in what is now
Queens Village, Queens, New York.
History
The range was established after the New York Legislature and the newly formed
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while cont ...
(NRA) combined in 1872 to acquire 70 acres of farmland from Bernardus Hendrickson Creed (1811–1889)
for long-distance rifle shooting and the holding of shooting competitions.
The range officially opened on June 21, 1873.
The
Central Railroad of Long Island
Central Railroad of Long Island was built on Long Island, New York (state), New York, by Alexander Turney Stewart, who was also the founder of Garden City, New York, Garden City. The railroad was established in 1871, then merged with the Flushing ...
established a railway station nearby, with trains running from
Hunter's Point, with connecting boat service to
34th Street and the
East River
The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Que ...
, allowing access from New York City.
In 1873 the NRA and the Creedmoor range benefitted greatly from the substantial publicity created when the Irish Rifle team, in that year the British champions having won the
Elcho Shield, challenged the NRA to a rifle shooting match at Creedmoor the following year. The Amateur Club accepted the challenge and won by a small margin.
In 1874 the
Leech Cup was presented to the Amateur Rifle Club by Major Arthur Blennerhassett Leech, Captain of the visiting Irish Rifle Team and is thus the oldest trophy offered today in competitive target shooting in the United States. It was presented to the NRA in 1901 and was then annually awarded for long distance shooting by any rifle.
In 1875, the
Wimbledon Cup
The Wimbledon Cup is a marksmanship trophy that was established in the 1870s.
It is awarded annually during the National Rifle & Pistol Matches which are held at Camp Perry, Ohio and has become the most prestigious prize in US long-range ri ...
was presented to the NRA by the British team on the occasion of their shooting at Wimbledon, then the home of British rifle shooting. It was then annually awarded for 1000-yard shooting.
International competitions, organized by the NRA, were held annually at the range until 1891, after which a decline in interest and support caused them to be moved to the range at the National Guard Camp,
Sea Girt, New Jersey under the auspices of the New Jersey State Rifle Association.
The Creedmoor site reverted to the State of New York in 1907 and in 1912 became the Farm Colony of Brooklyn State Hospital.
Today it is the site of the
Creedmoor Psychiatric Center.
See also
* .
Bibliography
Inline
General
*
* ; .
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Sports venues in Queens, New York
Sports venues in New York (state)
1873 establishments in New York (state)
Sports venues completed in 1873
1891 disestablishments in New York (state)