The Association

The year was 1983, C. Edward Johnson, a collector of Civil War and Early Western Arms, was living in Manassas, VA. He was looking for a place for gun collectors of all types and ages to get together and share their knowledge of guns and firearms. Deciding the best course of action to be a direct one, he founded the Virginia Gun Collectors Association and what started as a small group of collectors has grown into a thriving community of enthusiasts and aficionados numbering over 300 members.

We are the VGCA. We have members who specialize in firearms from as far back as the American Revolutionary War through to our modern military weapons. Every month we meet on the fourth Thursday at 7PM at the National Rifle Association headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia with a social hour beginning at 6PM. At every meeting you will find people showing off parts of their collections and a special presentation by an expert in their field. Some past lecture topics have been on the gyro-jet family of firearms, cannons, sniper rifles, and many more. Meetings are open to all club Members and their guests, we welcome you to come see what we have to share. If you are interested in experiencing the club first-hand, feel free to contact any of our officers for more information.

In addition to our monthly meetings, our members often get the opportunity for unique experiences and trips. Frequently our members get to visit private collections, remote museums, and firearm manufacturers for tours that are open to our members only. To see examples of our meeting topics and special expeditions feel free to browse through our newsletters.

Our crowning achievement and the event that we work hard for every year, twice a year, is our bi-annual VGCA Gun Show. Our gun show hosts over 40 venders and more than 1000 guests at the Dale City VFW in the Spring and Fall. We welcome any and all firearm and history enthusiasts to attend these shows, so check back to our site frequently for the most up-to-date information about our upcoming shows.

Including our status as a not-for-profit organization 501(c)(4), we consider it our duty to educate the community and our youth around the fascinating history of firearms and their related fields. We also feel that knowledge about gun safety and the proper handling of firearms is best taught early and as such have sponsored many youth firearm safety programs. For many years, we have partnered with the local 4H Clubs to hold educational events.

You may download our fact sheet from our President here.