THE 150th ANNIVERSARY OF THE NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION: On this day in 1871, the NRA received its charter from New York. Soon thereafter, General Ambrose Burnside was elected its first president.
Prior to the then-recent unpleasantness between the states, Burnside had been a firearms manufacturer in Rhode Island. During the war, he became concerned about his soldiers’ lack of marksmanship skills, stating, “Out of ten soldiers who are perfect in drill and the manual of arms, only one knows the purpose of the sights on his gun or can hit the broad side of a barn.” He was thus a natural choice to be president an organization that was primarily concerned with advancing marksmanship.
Fun fact about Burnside: He has rather unusual side burns. In fact, that’s where we get the term “sideburns.” No fooling.