The Hall Bulldog was designed and built by Robert "Bob" Hall in 1932. After contributing to the design of the renowned Gee Bee Z with the Granville Brothers, Hall struck out on his own in late 1931, founding the Springfield Aircraft Company in nearby Agawam, Massachusetts.

Financed by the Guggenheim family, the V-2 Bulldog was a small single-place, gull-winged airplane built to fly in the 1932 Cleveland National Air Races and the Thompson Trophy Race. Built at Bowles-Agawam Airport in Agawam, Massachusetts, the aircraft featured one of Hamilton Standard's first controllable pitch propellers.

Hall chose the distinctive gull-wing design after witnessing the Polish PZL P.6 flown by Boleslaw Orlinski at the 1931 National Air Races. He believed the gull-wing could provide better longitudinal stability, something he felt was lacking in the low-wing monoplane design of the Gee Bee Z.

During Thompson Trophy Race qualifications, the Bulldog achieved an average top speed of 244 mph, with a fleeting peak of 270 mph. In the race itself, the aircraft finished 6th with an average speed of 216 mph. There are several theories about what led to the Bulldog's poor showing—some believe the propeller pitch settings may have limited engine performance, while others point to Bob Hall's decision to use narrower fuel lines, which may have prevented the Wasp engine from reaching its full potential.