The Union Metallic Cartridge Company (UMC) was an early manufacturer of cartridge

ammunition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other we ...

for

small arms A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

. The company was founded in 1867 during the most rapid evolution of cartridge design to date. Following merger with

Remington Arms Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remington ...

in 1912, the company manufacturing complex in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequo ...

became a major arms supplier during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. The factory was Remington headquarters until 1984 and the source of sporting and police ammunition

headstamp A headstamp is the markings on the bottom of a cartridge case designed for a firearm. It usually tells who manufactured the case. If it is a civilian case it often also tells the caliber: if it is military, the year of manufacture is often adde ...

ed REM-UMC until 1970.

Independent history

The New York sporting goods firm of Schuyler, Hartley & Graham purchased two small

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

cartridge manufacturers in 1866. Machinery from the Crittenden & Tibbals Manufacturing Company of South Coventry, Connecticut, and from C.D. Leet of

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, th ...

, was moved to Bridgeport where ammunition production began as the Union Metallic Cartridge & Cap Company until the operation was incorporated as Union Metallic Cartridge Company in September 1867. Works of the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, Bridgeport

Works of the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, Bridgeport

A powder magazine on

Success Hill Success is the state or condition of meeting a defined range of expectations. It may be viewed as the opposite of failure. The criteria for success depend on context, and may be relative to a particular observer or belief system. One person migh ...

was destroyed by explosion of 16 tons of

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). T ...

on 14 May 1906. There were no deaths, but damage was reported as far away as

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

. In February 1909 UMC completed a shot tower which was the tallest building in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

for many years. The red brick shot tower functioned by dropping molten lead from a height of into vats of cold water deep. Pinfire Cartridge Boxes by Union Metallic Cartridge Company

Pinfire Cartridge Boxes by Union Metallic Cartridge Company

Merger with Remington

Schuyler, Hartley & Graham had purchased the firearms manufacturing firm of E. Remington and Sons in 1888 and formed

as the firearms manufacturing arm of their sporting goods business. Remington merged with UMC in 1912 and Bridgeport became Remington-UMC corporate headquarters while firearms production stayed in Ilion, New York. Manufacture of ammunition continued at Bridgeport until 1970. Remington corporate headquarters moved to

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...

in 1984, and Remington had completely vacated the Bridgeport factory complex by 1988.

References

{{Authority control Ammunition manufacturers Shot towers Remington Arms