It does seem that in the 1890s the shooters were playing pretty fast and loose with giving bulk smokeless powder loads in grains, rather than drams.
The Grand American Handicap for 1895 was held April 3, 4 and 5, at Willard Park, Patterson, New Jersey. Capt. A.W. Money was shooting a Greener weighing 7 ½ pounds with a 40 grain load of his E.C. powder pushing 1 ¼ ounce of #7 shot out of a UMC Trap shell. Noel E. Money was shooting a Parker Bros. gun which also weighed 7 ½ pounds but was using a hot load of 48 grains of E.C. pushing 1 ¼ ounce of #7 out of a UMC Trap shell. Capt. Money shot from the 31 yard line and withdrew after missing his 23rd bird with a score of 20. Noel was shooting from the 28 yard line and scored 23, losing his 10th and 20th birds.
The Grand American Handicap of 1896 was held March 24, 25 and 26, at Elkwood Park, near Long Beach, New Jersey, and with 109 entrants was the biggest Pigeon shoot up to that time. But, it was not a good year for the Moneys. Capt. Money shooting from the 29 yard line, killed four, missed three and withdrew. Noel E. Money shooting from the 28 yard line, killed two, missed three and withdrew, as did Annie Oakley from the 27 yard line. Capt. Money was still shooting a Greener and Noel a Parker, but they had gone to a faster load of 1 1/8 ounce of #7 pushed by 50 grains of E.C.
The Grand American Handicap of 1898 was held March 22, 23 and 24, at Elkwood Park, near Long Beach, New Jersey, and with 207 entered of which 197 appeared, was again the biggest Pigeon shoot up to that time. The only Money I find shooting the GAH was Capt. Money shooting a Greener weighing in at 7 pounds 15 ounces and using 1 ¼ ounce of #7 shot pushed by 52 grains of either E.C. or Schultze out of either Winchester Leader or UMC Trap hulls. The Captain killed 24 Pigeons, missing his tenth bird.
