Smith & Wesson to move headquarters from Massachusetts to Tennessee

Smith & Wesson is moving its headquarters from Massachusetts to Tennessee, citing the southern state's "unwavering support of the Second Amendment" as well as its lower cost of living. 

The decision to depart New England was "an extremely difficult and emotional" one, Mark Smith, the gun-maker's president and CEO, said Thursday in a statement. The company, based in Springfield, Massachusetts, since 1852, will spend $125 million on the relocation, it said. 

As many as 750 jobs will move from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Missouri to Maryville, Tennessee, by the summer of 2023, according to Smith & Wesson.