Flight Of The Eagle

The American Eagle brand has been part of Federal in one way or another since the very beginning. Harry and Louis Sherman, the original builders of the plant, worked in the ammunition industry before their association with Federal and continued to after they left the company.

Around 1920, they were involved in a company called Standard Shell & Cartridge Co. in Kansas City. It appears they never actually manufactured ammunition, having it made for them first by Dominion, then Western Cartridge Co., and finally Federal.

The ammunition company they then formed in 1922 was variously called American Ammunition, a name that appears in some advertising in the early 1920s, and also American Cartridge Co. It appears the latter name was the only one used on ammo headstamps and packaging.

The firm advertised several different shotshell types, including a low-brass field shell in green paper and the more powerful A-Grade with high brass and a red tube. Their advertising claimed great benefits from using cork wads, hardly an unknown component in those days.

Federal Era Begins

Whatever the good or bad points of the product, American Cartridge Co. soon ran into financial trouble and went bust, owing Federal a large sum for supplied ammo. Federal’s savvy president Charles Horn took over all company assets, which by that point were probably little more than the name and the American Eagle trademark.

Horn began offering American Eagle ammo almost immediately, adding rimfire cartridges to what had been strictly a shotshell line. The packaging style and the Kansas City address persisted as late as 1961, even though all the shotshells and most of the rimfire cartridges were made in Anoka by Federal. Oddities like 22 WRF were brought in from Western.

A 1933 price list offers Superior Fast Flight rimfires under the American Eagle brand in 22 Short, Long, Long Rifle and 22 WRF, all with cadmium-plated bullets. Hollow-points could be had in Long Rifle and WRF. Copper-plated bullets could be ordered in BB Cap, Short, Long, Long Rifle and WRF. Keep in mind the 22 Short was the most popular rimfire in the 1930s.

The Eagle Comes Of Age

Packaging for American Eagle ammo was little changed until the 1960s, when a more modern style with bold red and yellow colors was adopted. This was used for rimfire, shotshells and centerfire ammo, which duplicated the Federal centerfire line introduced in 1963.

The American Eagle brand was used for inexpensive “white box” ammo like full metal jacketed 9mm Luger and 223 Rem. during the 1970s and ’80s, providing an inexpensive alternative for fun afternoons of fast firing at the range. In 1989, Federal decided to upgrade the American Eagle brand and make it a full-time part of the Federal line. This came with new red packaging with distinctive graphics.

Throughout the 2000s, the American Eagle line was upgraded well beyond generic cartridges in common calibers. The 357 Sig cartridge was added in 2002, while the 10mm Auto joined the family the next year. The fast growth in suppressor use in those years led to ammo custom-designed for reliable use in silenced arms in 2013. These subsonic cartridges, including 300 Blackout and 22 LR, let you shoot quietly and effectively whether you’re shooting a “can” or not.

Over almost a century Horn’s decisive action in securing the American Eagle trademark has paid off handsomely for both Federal and for American hunters and shooters.