Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., better known by the shortened name Ruger, is an American firearm manufacturing company based in Southport, Connecticut, with production facilities also in Newport, New Hampshire; Mayodan, North Carolina; and Prescott, Arizona.
The company was founded in 1949 by Alexander McCormick Sturm and William B. Ruger and has been publicly traded since 1969.
[4] According to the ATF statistics for 2022,[5] Ruger is the largest firearm manufacturer[6] in the United States, surpassing Smith & Wesson.
[7] Just prior to their partnership, Bill Ruger had successfully duplicated two Japanese "baby" Nambu pistols in his garage, from a captured Nambu that he acquired from a returning Marine, at the close of World War II.
When it came to designing the Company's first product, Bill Ruger designed a semi-auto pistol that incorporated the looks of the German 9mm Luger P08 and the American Colt Woodsman into their first commercially produced .22 caliber pistol (see Ruger Standard), which became so successful that it launched the entire company.
The company is headquartered in Southport, Connecticut, and maintains manufacturing facilities in Newport, New Hampshire, Prescott, Arizona, and Mayodan, North Carolina.