Organized shooting in Kamloops dates back
to establishment of the Kamloops Rifle Club on
March 25, 1885. The club evolved under the names Gold Range Rifle Association, Kamloops Rifle
Association, Kamloops Gun Club, Kamloops & District Rifle Association,
and now the Kamloops Target Sports Association. The City of Kamloops Shield on display
at our Indoor range dates back to 1909. The photo is members of the Gold
Range Rifle Club in 1911 (click to enlarge).. 
In the early 1930s, Kamloops shooters amalgamated with
the Canadian National Recreation Association, a small-bore rifle club,
under the name Rocky Mountain Rangers Rifle Association. We shot
targets in the basement of a local hardware store at that time, and later used
the Drill Hall basement on Battle Street. The Gold Range, east of the
city limits, was used for outdoor shooting. During World War
II, civilian shooting ceased but continued for Rocky Mountain Rangers Militia Unit
members.
Immediately after World War II, local shooters
reactivated the association as a military rifle association under the
name of Rocky Mountain Rangers Rifle & Handgun Association. This
group has been in continuous existence since that time, with members
eventually dropping the military association and changing to the current
name of the Kamloops Target Sports Association.
