History
The UPSA is a Member Organization of the National Rifle Association and has been active in the Upper Perkiomen Valley for over 75 years.
Located in the small town of Red Hill, Pennsylvania, the Upper Perkiomen Sportsman Association was founded in 1942, and later Incorporated in 1947.
In 1951, UPSA was recognized as the largest Sportsmen’s Club in Montgomery County with its 890 active members, and it also established the first Ladies Auxiliary in the county.
Upper Perkiomen Sportsman Association received its recognition as a Fish and Game Club holding regularly scheduled trap shoots. In 1951 under this recognition the Association, was able to assist the community by stocking the Perkiomen Creek from Palm to Collegeville with 37,000 fish. Later in 1954 with the support of the members that number had been increased to 108,000 fish to be stocked in creek.
In the 1970’s, the club had the opportunity to formulate a committee also known as the Black Powder Committee, which accommodated the growing interest of Muzzle loading rifles. Black powder shooting was the main stay at the club starting in 1980 until interest dwindled down in 2001.
After its partnership with the Montgomery County Federation Winter league in 1999, the Association revived its interest in Trap shooting. Since 2000, the Association has run full schedules of trap shoots and an increasing number of events. Interest in these events has been sustained through the current day as UPSA runs monthly meat shoots, summer and winter league shoots, practice shoots, and educational shooting events.
After celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2017 and subsequently its 80th anniversary in 2022, U.P.S.A continues to be driven by a desire to provide the safest venue for shooting, to work with youth organizations and remain an integral part of the community. In March of 2018, Upper Perkiomen Sportsman Association launched two projects and since then several smaller projects to enhance the safe handling of firearms and increase club usage. As a result of these NRA and the Friends of the NRA (FNRA) grant subsidized projects, the Association is seeing increased use of the range by local youth organizations and other non-profit organizations within the community.