Sturm, Ruger & Co.

William Ruger and Alexander Sturm started in a rented machine shop in Southport in 1949 with a $50,000 stake and a .22 pistol whose grip frame deliberately recalled a Luger. It sold, and the company built the rest of its catalogue on the same principle: investment castings instead of forgings, a conventional design executed cheaply, and a price well under the established makers’. It is now among the largest firearms manufacturers in the United States and bought Marlin out of bankruptcy in 2020.