U.S. Repeating Arms Company
Template:Short description Template:More citations needed {{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for clobbered parameters|check|nested=1|template=Infobox company|cat=Template:Main other|name; company_name|logo; company_logo|logo_alt; alt|trade_name; trading_name|former_names; former_name|type; company_type|predecessors; predecessor|successors; successor|foundation; founded|founders; founder|defunct; dissolved|hq_location; location|hq_location_city; location_city|hq_location_country; location_country|num_locations; locations|areas_served; area_served|net_income; profit|net_income_year; profit_year|owners; owner |homepage; website }}{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox company with unknown parameter "_VALUE_" | ignoreblank=y | alt | area_served | areas_served | assets | assets_year | aum | brands | company_logo | company_name | company_type | defunct | dissolved | divisions | embed | equity | equity_year | fate | footnotes | former_name | former_names | foundation | founded | founder | founders | genre | homepage | hq_location | hq_location_city | hq_location_country | incorporated | image | image_alt | image_caption | image_size | image_upright | income_year | industry | ISIN | key_people | location | location_city | location_country | locations | logo | logo_alt | logo_caption | logo_class | logo_size | logo_upright | members | members_year | module | name | native_name | native_name_lang | net_income | net_income_year | num_employees | num_employees_year | num_locations | num_locations_year | operating_income | owner | owners | parent | predecessor | predecessors | production | production_year | products | profit | profit_year | rating | ratio | revenue | revenue_year | romanized_name | services | subsid | successor | successors | traded_as | trade_name | trading_name | type | website| qid | fetchwikidata | suppressfields | noicon | nocat | demo | categories }} The U.S. Repeating Arms Company (USRAC) was an American manufacturer of firearms. It was established in April 1857 and operated as an independent company until 1989, when it went bankrupt and was taken over by Fabrique Nationale Herstal. The company traced its origins to the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, which was famous for making Winchester rifles.
HistoryEdit
In 1866, Oliver Winchester reorganized the New Haven Arms Company and changed its name to the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. In 1931, the Western Cartridge Company (forerunner of the Olin Corporation) purchased Winchester Repeating Arms and subsequently merged with it to form the Winchester-Western Company.
In 1981, the U.S. Repeating Arms Company was established by Winchester employees to purchase the rights to manufacture Winchester-branded rifles and shotguns in New Haven, Connecticut, under license from Olin. Production of ammunition and cartridge components under the Winchester Ammunition Inc. name were retained by Olin and not licensed to USRAC.
In 1989, after the bankruptcy of USRAC, it was taken over by Fabrique Nationale Herstal (FN), a Belgium-based international group producing firearms.
In early 2006, it was announced that the factory in New Haven would close.<ref>U.S. Repeating Arms Company To Close New Haven Facility</ref> Production of several Winchester rifles would cease worldwide, while some models would be continued at factories outside the United States.{{#if:|{{{2}}}|[1]}} This later changed, as according to the FN website, Winchester-branded guns are still being produced by FN in both the U.S. and Belgium.
Factory in NewhallvilleEdit
Industrial activity in Newhallville was reduced drastically after 1965 when Winchester, at that time the largest employer in New Haven, decided to move its main production line to East Alton, Illinois.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> After a machinists' strike in the late 1970s, the factory was sold to U.S. Repeating Arms.<ref name=GunUSAToday>Associated Press, 'Gun that Won the West' becoming just part of history, USA Today, January 18, 2006</ref> The neighborhood's long history of arms production finally ended completely in 2006, when the U.S. Repeating Arms factory closed, laying off 186 workers.<ref>Tess Wheelwright, The Last Good-Bye, The New Haven Independent, March 30, 2006, and Paul Bass, The Earth Moves On Winchester, The New Haven Independent, August 11, 2009</ref><ref>Out With A Bang: The Loss of the Classic Winchester Is Loaded With Symbolism, Washington Post, January 21, 2006</ref>
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
- Winchesterguns.com website (Winchester firearms made by Herstal Group subsidiaries)
- Winchester.com website (Winchester ammunition made by the Olin Corporation)