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Author Topic: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.  (Read 731 times)

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Offline Blaster

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Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« on: March 17, 2009, 02:45:36 PM »
Since it was about 78 degrees today here in Southern Colorado, thought it'd be a fine day to get a photo of two of the cannons in our City park.  Two original cannons were on display in the park for over 100 PLUS years, that is up until about three or four years ago.  The story is that since they were turning "green" and nasty looking with all the bird crap on them, some kind hearted/generous guy offered to take them off the hands of the City and replace them with replicas on some "fancy" stands (bases).  I had pictures of the originals and they were really nice and in excellent condition other than the normal weathering - these pictures were lost when my recent computer shot craps.
The current cannons are of solid iron and bores are drilled about 12-inches deep.  Someone got a real bargain or STEAL on that "generous" swap.  Oops, no powder can to show scale but I requested my Mrs. to stand by one and she's all of 5'3" weighing a mighty 104 lbs (more powerful than a ton of FG).








And here's my BOSS to show scale of these reproductions:



Thanks for looking!
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Offline dan610324

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #1 on: March 17, 2009, 02:55:10 PM »
do you mean that they got those 2 beautiful cannons with those fancy stands just by swap them for those dirty old originals ??  oooohhh what a deal . thats really good , at least for one person .

do they have any more they want to get rid of ??  I will help them   ::)
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Dan Pettersson
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interested in early bronze guns

better safe than sorry

Offline intoodeep

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #2 on: March 17, 2009, 02:59:30 PM »
Blaster,

 Thanks for the photos. Sorry, to hear about the swap. That sounds like what an "East Coast" cannon collector had done quite a few times.  :(
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Offline dan610324

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2009, 03:04:18 PM »
yeah I read about him and his dirty way to get lots of originals for almost nothing a whila ago , unfortunately I forgot his name .
he had done similar deals on several places .
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Dan Pettersson
a swedish cannon maniac
interested in early bronze guns

better safe than sorry

Offline BoomLover

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #4 on: March 17, 2009, 03:45:40 PM »
"...And they will go to insane lenghts to convince the gullible public that what they have is worthless, and what they will give you in return is priceless!" ( Better known as "A Bird in Hand is worth Two in the Bush!")  The Lord Giveth and the Lord Taketh away, but a Conman just takes it away quicker...he will get his in the end! Two old, bird poop covered cannons for two new ones...how can ya pass on a deal like that! Whoever made that trade might have been in on the con!BoomLover
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Offline KABAR2

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2009, 12:51:17 AM »
Blaster,

Is this the Kit Carson Park in Trinidad Colorado?  I remember two Bronze Napoleons standing watch

there with their muzzles filled with cement, back when I went to college there, the 155's had the same

thing done to them, there was a small park down by the river  by the Rail road with a 155 cemented up,

Legend had it that some of the Gunsmithing students managed to load it like a muzzle loader and hit a

rail car with it.......... hence the cement in all the cannon,  does the National Guard unit still have the WWII

Artillery out there? they had a nice French 75 and a larger gun on display on the grounds.
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Offline Cannoneer

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #6 on: March 18, 2009, 03:22:10 AM »
http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/032005/nat_032005045.shtml

http://schny.info/cgi-bin/forum/Blah.pl?m-1126800242/

I've read more than a few articles involving this same type of scam being run on cemetaries and small towns across the country. This Kenneth Waterson who owns/owned a "museum" in Venetia, PA, supposedly had a full time agent working for him, whose sole job was to try and talk people into selling him these CW artillery pieces.
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Offline Blaster

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #7 on: March 18, 2009, 05:09:29 AM »
Quote from: KABAR2 on March 18, 2009, 12:51:17 AM
Blaster,
Is this the Kit Carson Park in Trinidad Colorado?  I remember two Bronze Napoleons standing watch
there with their muzzles filled with cement, back when I went to college there, the 155's had the same
thing done to them, there was a small park down by the river  by the Rail road with a 155 cemented up,
Legend had it that some of the Gunsmithing students managed to load it like a muzzle loader and hit a
rail car with it.......... hence the cement in all the cannon,  does the National Guard unit still have the WWII
Artillery out there? they had a nice French 75 and a larger gun on display on the grounds.

OK KBAR2, you "hit the nail on the head" as far as location goes.
 







There are quite a few cannons still in this town.  Most are WWII howitzers and of course most have been not only neglected but abused over the years.
Down by the former National Guard area, they have removed that French 75 and have taken it to the local High School for "reconstructing" but I rather doubt if any of the H.S. students really have any interest in it when they have access to their IPOD's.  I had asked the person in charge at the National Guard Headquarters what final disposition they will make of the Fr 75 and even they had no interest.  I remember that it had wooden wheels which were pretty well weathered away but the metal was in exceptional shape.  Would be a nice project to convert the tube to be a muzzle loader as it is classified as a C&R arm.
Oh, and thanks for filling me in on just why the tubes are all filled with concrete! :)
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Offline cannonmn

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #8 on: March 18, 2009, 06:01:00 AM »
Quote
This Kenneth Waterson who owns/owned a "museum" in Venetia, PA, supposedly had a full time agent working for him, whose sole job was to try and talk people into selling him these CW artillery pieces.

Dr. Waterson is out of it as far as cannons are concerned, as far as I know.  He began his withdrawl when Wayne Stark died.  Wayne was his "brain" for this stuff, as he put it to me once.  About two years ago his last couple of pices, a Parrott, and an Ord Rifle where on consignment to a CW dealer.  In fact I think there were two ord rifles in the final lot of 3 guns.

There is apparently still a bad actor who intimidates small towns and museums into parting with their cannons, except he now acquires them using those methods, for bounties from a few wealthy collectors.  I'm not going to name any names since I don't have current or firsthand info.
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Offline Cannoneer

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #9 on: March 18, 2009, 08:24:36 AM »
I just loved reading the last paragraph of the first web address I posted (famous last words of politicos), and then reading the whole of the second web address; this surely does tickle the heck out of me.


Cannonmn, do you know if K. Waterson still owns the museum, or did he part with his collection?
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RIP John. While on vacation July 4th 2013 in northern Wisconsin, he was ATVing with family and pulled ahead of everyone and took off at break-neck speed without a helmet. He lost control.....hit a tree....and the tree won.  He died instantly.

The one thing that you can almost always rely on research leading to, is more research.

Offline cannonmn

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Re: Cannon in the Kit Carson park.
« Reply #10 on: March 18, 2009, 11:18:46 AM »





Quote
Cannonmn, do you know if K. Waterson still owns the museum, or did he part with his collection?

Dr. Watterson is out of it as far as cannons are concerned, as far as I know.
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