Rugeley Rifle Club traces its origins to 1879 and the “Rugeley Rangers” (21st Staffordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps), part of the Victorian Volunteer Movement. The Corp shot around the Cannock Chase and Etchinghill area where the earthworks and back stops associated with many of those ranges can still be seen. The heritage lives on in names like “Shooting Butts Road” and “Rifle Range Corner”. Although we are rightly proud of our heritage, the club is now an entirely civilian group practicing Olympic (ISSF) and NSRA disciplines. We of course welcome members of both the Police and Armed Forces, but do not participate in any military style shooting.
The name “Rugeley Rifle Club” had been adopted by 1901 when our oldest trophy was presented by the Earl of Lichfield. 1901 saw the formation of the Society of Working Men’s Rifle Clubs, which spurred both civilians and Rifle Volunteers to form “miniature rifle” clubs where marksmanship could be practised affordably with smallbore rifles at short ranges and even indoors. Training with fullbore calibre rifles was not only more expensive in ammunition, but also entailed travel to larger ranges in the countryside, to the exclusion of those on lower-incomes.
The current range complex on Wharf Road was purpose-built and opened in 1971, undergoing continuous improvement since. The most recent developments include the installation in 2019 of a Public Access Defibrillator which was funded by club members in partnership with Rugeley and District Community First Responders, and the completion of the new Training Room in 2020, which provides a multi-purpose space for instruction, 10 metre airgun shooting as well as providing a covered firing point for the 50metre outdoor range, and housing the monitors for the Meyton electronic targets.
The club is open to all comers including disabled participants, and we have a strong training programme that encourages and welcomes novices into the sport. Please see Membership for information on becoming a member.