Watch The Big Picture - Commence Firing

Experience the American Journey through our country's visual heritage in this historical recording provided by the National Archives of the United States. From the U.S. Army's "The Big Picture" television series, 1950-1975. From colonial days, marksmanship has been an American tradition. In this film presentation, television audiences will visit the Armory at Springfield, Massachusetts, established in 1794. Gunsmiths here have created the basic weapons for our fighting forces. The Armory is the small arms center of the U.S. forces. Here, are concentrated the Ordnance Corps facilities for experimental development of hand weapons, including rifles and automatic weapons--also for pilot line production. Included in "Commence Firing," is footage of the Camp Perry, Ohio World Series of Marksmanship, sponsored jointly by the National Rifle Association and the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice.

This historical recording from the National Archives may contain variations in audio and video quality based on the limitations of the original source material.

The content summary for this video is adapted from an historical description provided by the government agency or donor at the time of production release.