Cannon Ball and Shell?

[nightrider05]

Hello,

I recently acquired a couple items that have been in my family for quite some time. My grandpa was an explosives expert and traveled the US doing various jobs. One of these jobs was doing some dynamite work for Inland Steel off Lake Michigan. I am unsure of the time frame of when this work was done, but my dad has had these items since he was 12, and is 65 now. These items were found roughly 65-75ft underground, and both were found in close proximity to eachother.

I believe the round ball is a cannonball. It weighs just over 18 pounds, with an approximate 5" diameter.

The second item appears to be some sort of shell. I have my doubts about this one, but still have no clue what it is. There are markings on it as shown in the pictures, however they aren't very easy to read. One of the markings appears to be "94". I can also make out "703" and possibly "K6FD". There is a word under the 703 marking, but all I can decipher in it are the letters "SVALE"

Can any one provide any info on these items? It would be much appreciated, as I would love to display them. I can provide more details.

 

[MRB1863]

Hello and welcome from 35 miles north of Gettysburg! I applaud you for wanting to display your Grandfather's treasures!!! It sounds like he had an exciting career! Have you any ancestors who participated in the Civil War???

 

[RebelHeart]

Hello nightrider05 and welcome from southern New Jersey!

I can offer nothing regarding the ball, but I think the stamps on the "shell" are foundry markings. I believe your best resource for finding out what that item is will come from US Steel, the current owners of what was once Carrie Furnace Works. My guess is that your "shell" probably came from the steel mill that once existed in Swissvale, Pennsylvania just outside of Pittsburgh (the legendary 'Rivers of Steel' region).

Good luck!

 

[nightrider05]

Thank you for the warm welcome.

As far as I am aware, none of my ancestors participated in the Civil War. On my fathers side, our history is a bit blurry and I have tried to dig into it a bit. Interesting enough, we discovered that one of my ancestors was taken during an indian raid, and kept with an indian tribe. My dad has always told me that my great grandpa was born and raised on a reservation, and lived there until he was in his late teens. We were able to verify most of this information.

I never met my Grandpa, but am working on a small display in my house to show off these items.

I will try to follow some of these leads to see what this item may be. I was unable to find any pictures of items war related that resembled the "shell".