In 1894, while the magazine was titled Shooting and Fishing, Gould attended the National Rifle Association matches held at Sea Girt and was impressed with the level of competition, leading him to write several editorials urging the public to join.

There had been no official connection between the NRA and the magazine, but Gould's prominence in the shooting world had helped establish and lend credibility to the organization as it tried to gain national footing.

In the aftermath of the name change, the scale of the magazine widened and four influential writers that would help shape the future of both The American Rifleman and shooting sports in general joined: Julian S. Hatcher, Charles Askins, Townsend Whelen and C. B. Lister.

The prominence of rifle shooting, as well as the decision to include all NRA members with free copies of the magazine, helped boost the circulation to over 30,000, making the publication self-sustainable for the first time in its history.

[10] Despite the harsh economic climate during the Great Depression in the 1930s, The American Rifleman continued to gain readers, eventually reaching a circulation of 56,000 and carrying its first full-color advertisement from the Packard Car Company.

Lee Harvey Oswald killed US President John F. Kennedy with a rifle purchased from a Klein's Sporting Goods ad in the February 1963 issue of American Rifleman.

"[16] In 1966, Ashley Halsey Jr. became editor for the magazine, bringing much more focus to the political realm, given the prominence of the bills proposed by senator Thomas Dodd restricting the sales of firearms across state lines.

Shortly afterward, in October 1973, hunting stories, reviews and tips were spun out into a separate publication, American Hunter, which was operating profitably within two years of its premiere.