“After the war, Dad was instrumental in convincing the government to sell him surplus 4895 and he brought it to market in 1947 as Hodgdon H4895,” said Bob Hodgdon, Hodgdon co-founder. “Our first ad selling surplus powder appeared in American Rifleman magazine in November 1947.
The idea for selling powder for reloading came from Bruce Hodgdon's service during WWII, according to son JB Hodgdon.
“Our father Bruce was drafted into the service during WWII, where he served as an aerial gunnery instructor for the Navy,” said JB Hodgdon, Hodgdon co-founder. “He used skeet to teach his students about the lead required to hit targets. He couldn’t get enough ammunition to teach skeet but could get components, so brother Bob and I would help him most nights loading shotshells so he could teach class the next day.”
Since its founding, the company has grown to offer gunpowder and blackpowder for handloaders and muzzleloading enthusiasts all across the country. The company has acquired other brands over the past 70 years, including IMR and Goex and distributes powder under the Hodgdon, IMR, Winchester, Pyrodex, Triple Seven, Goex and VihtaVuori brands.
"Although we’ve grown over the last 70 years and our company has a lot of accomplishments to celebrate, in our hearts, we’re still a group of proud handloading shooters and hunters from Kansas," Bob Hodgdon said. "We are grateful to our employees who manufacture, package and ship the product and for our handloading and muzzleloading customers who appreciate what we do.”
