History of Winchester Cannons:
The Bellmore Johnson Years (1975-Present)
1975 -
The Bellmore Johnson Tool Company (then) of Hamden, Connecticut,
obtained licensing rights from the Winchester Division of the Olin
Corporation to revive production of the Winchester signal cannon
after an absence of 17 years. At the time the Bellmore-Johnson Tool
Company, which employed about 40, specialized in the design, engineering
and prototyping of firearms. The reissuing of the Winchester Cannon
was well received in the firearms community and was featured in
two separate articles in the November 1976 issue of Gun World
magazine. Read more on Winchester
Cannons for the Bicentennial...
Production of the cannon by the Bellmore Johnson Company
remained virtually unchanged since the Winchester years except for
the roll marking on the barrel which required changes due to the
licensing agreement with Olin. These differences in the barrel roll
marking make it easy to differentiate cannons that were manufactured
by Winchester (from 1903-1958) and the Bellmore Johnson Company
(1976-Present). This also is a benefit to collectors who seek original
Winchester units.
 1976
- Bellmore Johnson Tool Company unveils a new cannon to commemorate
the Bicentennial. A Presentation Model featuring a solid brass barrel
and undercarriage, rubber tired wheels and a mahogany storage box.
Read more on the presentation brass
Winchester cannon...
 2001
- Through a little experimentation the Bellmore Johnson Company
assembles the Naval Edition cannon. With a combination of the black
and brass parts, the Naval Edition cannon has become the second
most popular cannon behind the standard black model.
2002 - The Bellmore Johnson
Company changes ownership and management for the second time since
restarting the production of the Winchester Cannon in 1975. This
change in ownership culminates with the launch of two new websites:
The Bellmore Johnson Company
website and the Bellmore Johnson Company online store, The
Cannon Store which, in addition to our Winchester Cannons, sells
a variety of other signal cannons and accessories.
Present - The Bellmore Johnson
Company is now entirely dedicated to the production of the Winchester
Signal Cannons. As they have been for over a century, Winchester
Cannons are entirely made and assembled in the United States, we
use no foreign outsourced parts or labor. The raw parts required
for the cannon are supplied by a variety of businesses in New England. Many
of our parts vendors have continually supplied us since the cannon's
reintroduction in 1975. Read
more on modern cannon manufacturing...
Over one hundred years after its design and introduction
the Model 98 Cannon is still crafted with the same precision and
quality that defined the Winchester Repeating Arms Company as an
American industrial legend. The Bellmore Johnson Company plans to
carry on the Winchester tradition with the production of the Model
98 Signal Cannon for well into the foreseeable future.
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Years (1901-1958)
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