You guys need to read an article written in the Arkansas Democrat dated April 1, 1887 page 5 column 2. A friend of mine send me the article several months ago, it is about the accidental firing of the Lady Baxter on the night of March 31, 1887. It is a long article so here is the jest of it, but one needs to read the whole story. A group of business types, from the Capital Hotel, came up Markham Street to the State House. They stopped on the grounds, gathering around the cannon, sharing jokes. One fellow, a Mr. Meyers of Buffalo, New York was standing at the breech, smoking a cigar, and chattering away. Well someway a cinder went down the vent, and BOOM. Knocked everyone down. Meyers' face was burnt badly and lost an eye, he was carried back to his room (200 Capital Hotel) and a Dr. Lenow called. The gun contained a solid shot, which went through the fence, through the Benjamin brick building, then glanced and veered to the right, struck the northwest corner of the custom house knocking out two large blocks of granite. At Second and Spring Street it struck a rent-a convict named John Moran standing in a wagon delivering a load of fire wood to the Deming house. After striking him at the waist and severing his body. The ball bounded for quite a distance down Spring Street.
The concussion broke windows as far as Tenth Street. The cannon had been loaded during the Brooks/Baxter War, but not fired, and I suppose everyone had forgotten about it.
The article had this written as to the history of the gun. " It is a very large gun, with a 10 - inch muzzle and was made by the British for navy warfare. In 1812 it was captured from the British and taken to New Orleans, where it remained until the late war. Then it was brought to this city on a Confederate gun boat."
"It remained here in good order until the time of Steel's stampede. Then the wagon on which it was mounted was burned , its trunnion was cut away, it was "spiked" and buried in a field south of the city. There it remained until the Brooks and Baxter war, when the Baxter men took it up, replaced its trunnion and planted it on the river bank back of the state house. Several years ago, however, it was brought around and placed in front of the state house, where it now remains." When originally built the front of the State House faced the river and Markham Street was at it rear.
"The Ball that did so much damage was made in a blacksmith shop by J.D. Willet, Judge Hill's father-in-law, and was fashioned out of an old anvil."