Gunsite or Gunsight? – The Rest of the Story

Why is it Gunsite and not Gunsight?

This question comes up from time-to-time.  While we thought we knew the answer, the best source was just down the drive, living in The Sconce . . . . . .

Janelle Cooper was happy to confirm what was suspected.  As Lt. Col. Cooper was a well educated man (Bachelor of Science, 1941, Stanford and Masters in History from University of Southern California, Riverside), words and grammar meant things to him.  (Not to mention Mrs. Cooper’s degree in Letters (Literature) from Stanford in 1942.)

Simply put, Gunsite is a location, not a thing.  That is, a gun sight is what we use when we shoot our firearms.  Namely, ‘the funny bump on the end of the gun’ that we focus on as we press the trigger and properly follow-through.  As The American Pistol Institute was to be the center of learning and education for all things firearms related, it needed to be described appropriately:  Gunsite!

As Paul Harvey used to say, now you know ‘the rest of the story.’