What are these four things?

[Mike Serpa]

What are the four things at the bottom of the photo that look like aluminum baseball bats embedded into the ground big end first? Thanks.

Savannah, Georgia (vicinity). View of Fort on the Ogeechee River. LC-DIG-cwpb-03495 Sam Cooley photo. (About 60% of the photo was cropped.)

 

[reading48]

????????????? Someone will respond....

 

[kel1985]

No clue, sorry

 

[sockknitter]

I'm no kind of expert and this is a totally amateur guess. Keeping in mind things nearer a camera look bigger, my idea is that they could be railroad spikes or some kind of tent pegs. The spheres....grapeshot?

 

[kel1985]

I'm no kind of expert and this is a totally amateur guess. Keeping in mind things nearer a camera look bigger, my idea is that they could be railroad spikes or some kind of tent pegs. The spheres....grapeshot?

I was thinking solid cannon balls, but it's hard to figure scale...the pegs I thought maybe tent pegs, but then that brings the question why there in that configuration?

 

[Dave Wilma]

I say supports to stack the cannonballs.

 

[Red Harvest]

Looks like they might be either some sort of rocket, or some sort of anti-personnel mine ("torpedo.") Diameter looks about right for a rocket.

Location appears to be Fort McAllister.

 

[M E Wolf]

Need to have one of our Engineer re-enactors to take a peek, in my opinion --

M. E. Wolf

 

[AUG]

I'm no kind of expert and this is a totally amateur guess. Keeping in mind things nearer a camera look bigger, my idea is that they could be railroad spikes or some kind of tent pegs. The spheres....grapeshot?

The cannon balls are definitely too big to be grapshot and if they were they usually wouldn't be loose. They are most likely round shot or shell. For the long sticks, I still can't figure out what they are

 

[TinCan]

Here's another odd thing....wonder why they stuck the three muskets in the ground upside down?

 

[Republican Blues]

The shot looks like 32 pounder projectiles.... the four "bats" are probably signal rockets, And this is Fort McAllister.

 

[RobertP]

Civil War Signal Corps Kit
courtesy of the CMH Museums Collection
Expired Image Removed

Various elements of a typical Regulation Civil War Signal Corps Kit, from top to bottom: two signal flags, two torches, one a Foot Torch, the other a Flying Torch. The Flying Torch has attachments for use with a long pole and could thus be used by mounted personnel. The artifact on the bottom is an extremely rare, unfired Civil War Army and Navy Signal Rocket. These artifacts are in the collection of the United States Army Historical Collection.​

​

Sure doesn't look like this one.​

 

[Pvt.Shattuck]

They look like heavy iron spikes, perhaps used to hold artillery pieces in place or hold masonry walls together.

 

[Pvt.Shattuck]

Here's another odd thing....wonder why they stuck the three muskets in the ground upside down?

Possibilities in order of likelihood:
1. Too many muskets in the stack, couldn't accommodate anymore
2. Tired of confusion trying to find mine in the stack, especially at night (guard duty)-need to get to it quick.
3. Setting up supports for a cover of some sort with canvas or blankets and line

 

[unicornforge]

Due to how they reflect light similar to how the cannon balls reflect light, I would guess that the four objects are also iron. But would iron stakes have round heads, because round heads would be more difficult to hit with a hammer/sledge than a flat one.

 

[Pvt.Shattuck]

View attachment 11362
Due to how they reflect light similar to how the cannon balls reflect light, I would guess that the four objects are also iron. But would iron stakes have round heads, because round heads would be more difficult to hit with a hammer/sledge than a flat one.

Good point, that occurred to me as well.

 

[Republican Blues]

Civil War Signal Corps Kit
courtesy of the CMH Museums Collection
Expired Image Removed

Various elements of a typical Regulation Civil War Signal Corps Kit, from top to bottom: two signal flags, two torches, one a Foot Torch, the other a Flying Torch. The Flying Torch has attachments for use with a long pole and could thus be used by mounted personnel. The artifact on the bottom is an extremely rare, unfired Civil War Army and Navy Signal Rocket. These artifacts are in the collection of the United States Army Historical Collection.​

​

Sure doesn't look like this one.​

LOL I said probably.... and yeah they dont. So much for a SWAG LOL

 

[Republican Blues]

They look like heavy iron spikes, perhaps used to hold artillery pieces in place or hold masonry walls together.

The guns didnt need Iron spikes to hold em in place... weight of the piece and carriage did that. They are not handspikes, that is for certain sure, since the handspikes used for the 32 pounder were wooden, and the ones for the 8 and 10 inch columbiad are visible in the pics of the same type guns posted in the thread on the Jeff Davis 10 inch. I will forward this pic to a buddy of mine who happens to be the HMFIC at Ft McAllister, and see if he knows....

 

[AndyHall]

Heavy pins on which artillery mounts like the one in the background are pivoted?

 

[101combatvet]

Since they are placed behind the mound with other cannon balls they are likely explosive devices. Possibilities might be rockets, flares, roman candles, signaling devices.