Ireland vs USA, 1876

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A team of Irish riflemen famously competed against an American team at Creedmoor, USA, in 1874. They fired at 800, 900, and 1,000 yards, and the Americans won. The following year, they held a return match at Dollymount, Ireland, and the Americans won again. The Grand Centennial Rifle Contest was held at Creedmoor in 1876, when America, Australia, Canada, Ireland, and Scotland competed for what would become known as the Palma Trophy. This gave America their third victory.

Keeping the score — Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, 30 September 1876

Another international match, overlooked today, followed a week after the Grand Centennial Rifle Match at Creedmoor, on 21 September 1876. This was a return match between the old adversaries, America and Ireland. The match was contested, as in their earlier encounters, between six man teams.

Shooting at 800 yards did not commence until nearly 11:30am and finished with America fifteen points ahead, scoring 409 against Ireland’s 394. At 900 yards Ireland fell a further seventeen points behind their rivals. One report cited the hot, bright sunshine and the glare from the targets as a possible cause of the Irish problems, noting that their later improved performance at 1,000 yards was perhaps due to the mellow twilight “to which they are best accustomed at home.” Ireland’s aggregate at 900 yards was 369, while the Americans scored 386.

Spectator numbers swelled at the range as the closing 1,000 yard shooting began. Applause and spontaneous murmurs marked success, while a subdued tone of disappointment noted unexpected failure. The Americans closed with an aggregate of 370. The Irish team shot steadily and finished 21 points clear of the US on 391. Despite this, it was not enough to beat the Americans, and the closing aggregate scores were 1,165 for the US and 1,154 for Ireland.

This brought the 1876 international rifle matches to a close. The following year, American riflemen were to face a Great Britain team at Creedmoor.

The Creedmoor Era

The Amateur Rifle Club Long Range Badge

Research Press
2024-05-30
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On 30 May 1874 (#onthisday) competition began for the Long Range Badge of the Amateur Rifle Club of New York. Eighteen contestants were entered for the match, twelve used rifles by Sharps and six used rifles by Remington.

The Creedmoor Era

Creedmoor and the International Rifle Matches

Research Press
2017-12-12
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To trace the origins of the Creedmoor rifle range one needs to go back to the immediate post Civil War years in America. Understandably, at the time there was little interest in marksmanship or military matters from the general public, and although the US National Guard received plenty of drill and marching instruction there was scant, if any, marksmanship training. The impetus for the development of marksmanship skills within America’s National Guard units came from the pages of the Army and Navy Journal. The editor was William Church, and a kindred spirit was George Wingate, whose “Manual for Rifle Practice” appeared in six instalments in the Journal in late 1870 and early 1871. Reprinted in book form in a number of editions the manual became the standard work upon which rifle practice was developed in America.