Beartown Sportsman Association

Beartown Sportsman Association started in 1933 as a small group of neighbors meeting in a chicken house. Today it operates as a 650-member club on a 14-acre property in Narvon, Lancaster County, just off Gehman Road. The club is part of the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen and Conservationists and actively stocks local waterways and forests for the community.

Membership costs are straightforward:

Renewals are mailed each November for the upcoming year. You'll need to return your signed application and payment to stay active.

• •Rifle Range (left side)
• •Paper targets only on Beartown backstops
• •Bullet traps acceptable
• •10-round limit per firearm
• •No shooting across ranges
• •Ricochet containment required—rifles stay left side to prevent rounds landing on neighboring property

• •Pistol Range (right side)
• •Pistols only
• •Paper targets on backstops
• •10-round limit
• •New shooting benches for comfortable seated shooting

Archery Range - Separate, firearms-free area - No broadheads allowed

• •Range Hours: 9 a.m. to dusk, 7 days a week (closed third Sundays during block shoots)

• •Schedule: October 19, 2025 | December 21, 2025 | January 18, 2026 | February 22, 2026 | March 15, 2026 | April 19, 2026
• •Clays thrown right to left
• •Bird shot only
• •Prizes awarded
• •Range closed all day while directors set up
• •Children must be supervised—no running on range during active shooting

1. Must carry membership card; non-members asked to leave 2. Paper targets only—no steel plates or explosives 3. No shooting across ranges; no ground shooting 4. Pistols only on pistol range 5. No automatic weapons (one shot per trigger pull) 6. No alcohol 7. Lead core, range-safe ammunition only—no steel core, tracers, or incendiary rounds 8. Limit 10 rounds on all firearms 9. No shooting beyond pavilion posts 10. Follow all Pennsylvania gun laws

"Think safety for you and your fellow shooters. Only shoot paper targets on backstops. Beware of ricochet. Clean up after yourself."

Beartown isn't just a shooting range. The club:

• •Raises and stocks trout in local creeks for fishing derbies
• •Raises pheasants for local hunting
• •Sponsors two youth annually to attend Youth Conservation Camp at Northern Lancaster County Game and Fish Protective Association in Denver, PA
• •Cleans Route 322 once monthly as part of their adopted highway program

• •Monthly meetings: Third Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the clubhouse (members welcome)
• •Federation Banquet: Annual event typically held in March
• •Special events: Hosted throughout the year

GPS Address: 289 Gehman Road Narvon, PA 17555

Mailing Address for Membership: Beartown Sportsman Association c/o Siedhof Family 6636 Division Highway Narvon, PA 17555

• •Phone: (717) 354-0336

Do not send payments to the GPS address—there is no mailbox. Use the mailing address above.

The club's founding officers in 1951 were Carl I Dombach (President), Paul Weller (Vice President), Eugene Y Gehman (Secretary), Ross R Fink and Henry L Sloan (Financial Treasurers). Long-time member Edward B. Carvell, a World War II veteran, has been with Beartown since 1953 and even designed the flying targets for block shoots using his engineering background.

Download the membership application from the website, read the range rules, complete your information, and mail with payment. Applications must be filled out completely or they'll be returned. Each person needs a signed application.