DCL

CIVIL WAR CANNON - A rare piece of American history (Episode: Civil War Cannon)

Will Hayden may have felt a little sticker shock when he heard the $250,000 price tab on the bronze Confederate cannon, but the Red Jacket owner knows all too well how rare and desirable this artillery piece is in the world of Civil War collectibles, especially one that can handle live fire! Known as a 12-pounder Napoleon (the name comes from the weight of its standard "cannon ball" combined with the French emperor whose army developed the gun in the 1850s), this smooth-bore gun were one of the most effective weapons on Civil War battlefields.

In the "Sons of Guns" episode, the owner provides several key facts about the piece, including the manufacturer's information, "Leeds & Co. New Orleans," that is stamped on one of the gun's trunnions (the two side cylinders on the barrel that rest in the carriage). He also states that it was made in 1862 and that there were only 12 of this model produced. Additionally, he mentions that because industrial metals were so rare in the South, some of these bronze cannons were cast from church bells that had been melted down.

Let's take a look at what else is known about the history of this artillery piece. First, this gun is one of the earliest pieces produced by the Confederacy. The gun's New Orleans manufacturer, Leeds & Co., dates back to the 1820s, but before the Civil War it specialized in commercial steam engines and milling machinery. When Louisiana joined the Confederacy in 1861, Leeds quickly began experimenting with artillery production, and by the spring of 1862 the company had turned out 49 field artillery pieces, including a dozen bronze 12-pounder Napoleons (one of these is the gun featured in the show). Near the end of April 1862, however, Leeds was forced to close down its gun-manufacturing operations when New Orleans was captured by a Federal invasion force. This short production run alone guarantees the extreme rarity of these cannon barrels.

Little is known about the subsequent fate of these 12 guns, but the passing years took a heavy toll on Civil War artillery in general. One of the chief culprits in this destruction was the U.S. government's practice of melting down surplus barrels to recycle useful metals for newer weapons during wartime. Not until the latter half of the 20th century -- with the expansion of both Civil War battlefield parks and the ranks of collectors -- did the true value of the guns became more widely appreciated. We do know that four Leeds 12-pounder Napoleons went into action at the Battle of Shiloh, in southwestern Tennessee, on April 6, 1862 (with Robertson's Alabama Battery), but there are no further records for these guns. One 12-pdr Leeds forms part of Confederate Battery No. 5 at the Petersburg (Va.) National Battlefield. But there is currently no trace of the other 10.