National Rifle Association

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National Rifle Association
Website	www.nra.org
Legal status	501(c)(4)
Founded	1871, by Colonel William C. Church and General George Wingate
Headquarters	11250 Waples Mill Road Fairfax , Virginia United States

The National Rifle Association of America, or NRA, is a non-partisan, non-profit American interest group created to “preserve and defend” the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. Founded in 1871 by Col. William C. Church and Gen. George Wingate, both Union veterans of the American Civil War, the group touts itself as America’s oldest civil rights organization.

Often referred to as one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the United States, the NRA boasts nearly four million members, according to the organization’s website. The NRA trains approximately 750,000 gun owners each year, and promotes firearm safety with its training courses and educational programs.

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History

The National Rifle Association was founded shortly after the end of the American Civil War (1861-1865), but several decades after Samuel Colt opened the first private gun manufacturing facility in 1836.

By the end of the nineteenth century, factories were producing weapons at affordable prices, creating widespread individual ownership of guns . The NRA trained many of these new gun owners, often men in the army, with its rifle ranges.

The group’s first rifle range, located on Long Island, was paid for by the New York stage legislature. In 1903 Congress set up the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice, now known as the Civilian Marksmanship Program. The NRA helped to run this board, and Congress eventually gave surplus guns to NRA-sponsored rifle clubs, allowing the organization to expand westward (Cite Economist).

The tenor of the organization changed after World World II, as the NRA began to accommodate the recreational sportsman, even putting together an Olympic rifle team.

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Founding

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Current objectives and activities

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Organizational structure

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Achievements

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Public perception and controversies

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