Been away from the computer for a couple days trying to get caught up with items on the household “List” I couldn't get to while on the road. Made a rabbit cage to keep them separate. We don't want any "overpopulation" around here!
Stewburner, You are correct; that is a Dahlgren Percussion Lock. Most of the guns of this design were used on ships. Almost all were 32 pounder smoothbores, thoroughly obsolete by the start of their manufacture in 1864. Believe it or not, this gun had no elevation screw and resorted to a quoin for elevation adjustment. A huge contract was let and all were built with many being made AFTER the war was over! Politics?? We will post a different view of this gun if we have another "What is it Where is it?" contest as sufficient details for identification are not included in the pic offered previously. Good call Stewburner! Thanks for your participation.
Spuddy, Right on. It is a pierced tin lantern, a one candle powered one. We found it in a land locked fort about 275 mile from the Atlantic Ocean, we we are quite certain very similar lanterns were used on 18th century ships. This one dates from 1766. Giving off very little light, it was mounted high, used to illuminate a storge space for large, heavy objects which were tipped over and rolled past a heavy door, down a zig-zag hallway by moccasin clad artillerymen to a separate room where the objects were opened and their contents used in preparing artillery items. In this fort, why were these lanterns used and where were they used? Sure did enjoy meeting your wonderful family and neither Mike nor I will forget Paul's giggling when we torched off that maximum blank inside his barn on that rainy day in September. Northern Maine is very beautiful. However, I'm wondering if the moose sense we have a cannon on board and are shy about revealing themselves. Another trip will be necessary to see those majestic and elusive creatures.
Dominic, thanks for the invite to your home in Pennsylvania. Sorry double D., but another 5 hour coffee break was necessary so Dom could show us all his very cool new cannons including the revolving type and lots of good looking pocket size ones too. His shop is a model of efficiency and his separate welding shop keeps the smoke out of the house. Dom has more irons in the fire than four blacksmiths. I still can't figure out how he makes his cannons look so good in one tenth the time it would take Mike and I. I hope he doesn't think we are stalking him, because a week after we visited him at home, we ran into him at a large gunshow in the Philladelphia Event Center near King of Prussia, PA. That revolving cannon sure looked great with a coat of grey and black paint!! Yes, we stayed out of his way when he was talking with customers. Thanks for those barbette guns, Dom. We will test those and the two Dahlgren guns we ordered from you the next time we go shooting.
Despite the lack of enthusiasm for a Nineth Contest, we will probably create one anyway. After all, if we had waited for all our relatives and friends to give us the thumbs up to quit our corporate manufacturing jobs and strike out on our own to create our small manufacturing business, we would still be waiting now, 16 years later!! The picture below shows you just one of the many British/Colonial forts built during or at the end of the French and Indian War. Mike is playing the part of a loyal British Colonialist in 1765 defending the fort from probing by French military patrols. The lantern is located in this fort in western PA.
Tracy and Mike
Where is your uniform, militiaman?? Despite being noticeably out-of-uniform, Mike, being a former military man, knows how to follow orders. He is waiting for the order to fire after hearing the prepatory command: "Prepare to CLICK!" followed shortly thereafter by the command of execution: "CLICK YOUR BICS!". Now if this were a French fort, the pronunciation of that command would be: "CLICK YOUR BEEKS!"
