The Missing Gun

[Robert Gray]

In 1864 two Armstrong 8-inch, 150-pdr. guns were run through the Union blockade and installed in Confederate coastal defenses near Wilmington, NC. One was mounted at Battery Purdie in Fort Fisher. When the fort was evacuated in January 1865 the gun was claimed as a trophy and sent to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point where it can be seen to this day. The second Armstrong was mounted at Fort Caswell on the other side of the Cape Fear River about 3 miles to the south. The navy loaded this one on board a ship and sent it to the Practice Battery at Annapolis, MD as seen in the photograph below. The fate of this gun remains a mystery and we can only assume it fell victim to a post war scrap drive. (National Archives)

 

[John Winn]

That's a great photo. You can really see the detail on four different types of guns.