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DANBURY - The Pahquioque Rod and Gun Club of Danbury, the oldest trap shooting club in New England, in conjunction with the Scholastic Clay Target Program of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) of Newtown sponsored the first-ever Junior

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DANBURY – The Pahquioque Rod and Gun Club of Danbury, the oldest trap shooting club in New England, in conjunction with the Scholastic Clay Target Program of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) of Newtown sponsored the first-ever Junior Trap Shooting Team to compete at the Connecticut State shoot at the Hartford Gun Club on June 25.

Pahquioque (the Native American name for Danbury) Rod and Gun Club was organized in Danbury on Friday, August 4 1899. The club has been in constant operation in the Danbury area since that time, sponsoring trap competitions and promoting the sport.

The club won national recognition as far back as 1908 for promoting trap shooting and running successful beginner events. It continues to run such events today. at the Wooster Mountain Range on Route 7.

The Club also has a tradition of famous trap shooters and personalities participating in Pahquioque events. Going back in time personalities such as the legendary Annie Oakley, John Philip Sousa, Grover Cleveland Alexander, and Christy Mathewson of baseball fame shot at Pahquioque events.

In 1927, the club chartered a train to bring trap shooters from New York City to Pahquioque for the Hat Shoot. Baseball greats Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Bill Dickey shot there as guests of Harry Mallory, owner of the Mallory Hat Company and a Pahquioque member.

In July, 1949, Wooster Mountain State Park, the current home field of the club, was dedicated as “the first known enterprise of its kind nationwide, with trap shooting made available to state residents.” Pahquioque was one of nine sponsoring clubs for the new range, and is the only one of the original clubs still associated with Wooster Mountain.

Danbury is no longer the Hat Capitol, but Pahquioque events always included hats as prizes for winning shooters and they still do. The club runs two major competitions each year and the “Hat Shoot” remains one of the most popular and best attended trap shooting competitions in Connecticut.

The other competition, “The Paul Garofalo Memorial Shoot,” honors the memory of the club’s past president and leader and has attendance and support equaling that of the annual Hat Shoot.

Pahquioque’s century old tradition of running the shoots that shooters like to attend is still intact and in the good hands of Pahquioque members.

Throughout the 20th century, Pahquioque was recognized nationally and locally for promoting trap shooting to the general public. Today, the unique trap shooting program at Wooster mountain is available to the public every Tuesday, year round from 10 am until dusk. It is used by as many as 100 shooters a day.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, through its Scholastic Clay Target Program, provides school age participants with the opportunity to showcase their competitive shooting skills and earn state and national recognition. The program is designed to instill participant’s safe firearms handling, commitment, responsibility, leadership and teamwork.

For more information on the Scholastic Clay Target Program, visit www.nssf.org/SCTP or contact the National Shooting Sports Foundation at (203) 426.1320. For more information on Pahquioque Rod and Gun club and the public program at Wooster Mountain, visit www.Pahquioque.com.

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