Scopes for AR's

Telescopic Sighting Systems Explained

The picture above (1) shows the West Point Battle Monument. It was dedicated on 15 June 1864 by General George McClellan. He stated "The site of the Battle Monument is dedicated in commemoration of the Officers and Privates of the regular Army who have died in the present war.”  He was talking about the Civil War of course and that’s why one of the nicknames for the Battle Monument is “monument to Southern marksmanship.”

"Why are you dodging like this? They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance."

Those are the famous, if apocryphal last words of Union General John Sedgewick on May 9^th, 1864. He uttered them seconds before a Confederate sniper shot him in the face (under the left eye) from about one thousand yards away. The Confederate sniper was probably using a Whitworth rifle ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitworth_rifle ) with a telescopic sight.

One thousand yards remained more or less the maximum effective range of an American sniper for about the next 130 years. It was not until after the first gulf war that the practical maximum effective range increased for snipers (at least using rifles that they can carry). Now, recreational shooters routinely hit targets at distances of one mile and more.