Coal bombs

[MeTheNorth]

I apologize for this post if the topic has been discussed already, or for that matter beaten to death. I recently stumbled upon a Steve Phillips YouTube where he describes a very rare 'coal bomb' that he discovered during one of his hunts. While cradling the piece he described how it was used and the devastating effect it had on Union trains. The conception and production of this explosive demonstrated pure genius on the part of the Confederates. I would like to know if anyone has seen mention of this weapon in Civil War publications or novels, either non-fiction or historical-fiction.

 

[UCVRelics]

We have had many great threads about this a recently one on the Steve Phillips vid. If you will go to the top right hand corner of the home page and click the search button and type in your search subject you can see them all.

 

[MeTheNorth]

Thanks. I should have done that in the first place....I'm still learning!

 

[UCVRelics]

View attachment 393912

I apologize for this post if the topic has been discussed already, or for that matter beaten to death. I recently stumbled upon a Steve Phillips YouTube where he describes a very rare 'coal bomb' that he discovered during one of his hunts. While cradling the piece he described how it was used and the devastating effect it had on Union trains. The conception and production of this explosive demonstrated pure genius on the part of the Confederates. I would like to know if anyone has seen mention of this weapon in Civil War publications or novels, either non-fiction or historical-fiction.

I should have added that the proper term for them is the "Coal Torpedo" and they was also used on ships as well. Here is a great book on the subject.

 

[MeTheNorth]

I should have added that the proper term for them is the "Coal Torpedo" and they was also used on ships as well. Here is a great book on the subject.
View attachment 393937

Thank you so much for the follow-up. I will hunt down a copy.

 

[Harman Farm]

Hmmm..makes me wonder about the SS Sultana??

 

[DBF]

Hmmm..makes me wonder about the SS Sultana??

This was a recent "trivia" question and in my research I read this article in regards to the SS Sultana.

https://www.navygeneralboard.com/coal-torpedo-secret-weapon-of-the-confederacy/

Unfortunately it appears that a ship's boiler was a vulnerable piece of equipment as well making it difficult to determine what actually caused the explosion but it certainly was a creative method to deliver destruction to an enemy target. As the title of this article sums up nicely: "Simple - Cheap - Deadly"

https://www.historynet.com/simple-cheap-deadly.htm