Rifle Range Target Butts

Rifle Range Target Butts

Established in 1879, the now overgrown rifle range was used by soldiers and sailors until at least the 1920s. The province of Nova Scotia had built its own rifle range near Bedford in the 1860s, but the commander of the British garrison was “incensed” over being charged a fee for his troops to use it, so he directed an 800-yard range to be built on McNabs.

The trail following the rifle range begins near Fort McNab, where three small concrete structures can be found. They housed optical range-finders which were not actually associated with the rifle range, but rather were used to aim the big guns at Fort McNab against attacks by sea.

As the trail goes downhill it cuts through the remains of earthen berms every 100 yards, before ending at the target butts. The chain mechanisms that raised and lowered the targets can still be seen today. The target butts are in state of disrepair and the area is partly flooded and present hazards. Care and caution must be used by anyone who chooses to explore the area.

An account of the marksmanship of one group using the rifle range recounts “the troops embarrassed themselves with targets hits 300 times out of 13,000 shots fired.”