The Florida in the Civil War Message Board

Re: 2nd Maine Cav Arty @ Marianna?

Dale,

Have you had the chance to examine the cannonball and verify it was 12-pounder solid shot? Standard period ordnance references don't provide for solid shot with howitzer batteries. (There is no reason they couldn't fire solid shot, they just wouldn't attain very good muzzle velocity with the small charges and short tubes of howitzers, so putting them in the ammunition chest was a pointless exercise since plugged shell/case could accomplish the same thing.) If there was no fuze hole or plug then it was solid shot. Diameter would verify if it was truly 12-pounder. It's a great story nonetheless, and whatever type of round, it doesn't necessarily mean anything with regard to the pieces brought along. (Could have been a trophy, souvenir, or simply some surplus ammo that was used to fill out the ammo chest.)

From what I've gathered, the mountain howitzers were often not employed unless needed to support an advance, etc. If a unit ran into stiff resistance and the enemy wouldn't "drive" worth a hoot for them, then the little pieces would be called up to make the foe skedaddle. With the way Marianna unfolded there wasn't really much opportunity to use them. Gen. Asboth didn't realize what he was up against until already wounded and his force heavily engaged.

P.S. Since I know you are also working on Arkansas studies, in Arkansas and Missouri there was some use of some even smaller Woodruff guns and the like. These are interesting because they outranged the mountain howitzers, although in most other respects they were far inferior. It creates the interesting case of really small caliber field pieces sometimes proving useful at forcing howitzers to withdraw. I think Banasik's Prairie Grove study gives an example of this.

Best regards,

Shawn

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2nd Maine Cav Arty @ Marianna?
Re: 2nd Maine Cav Arty @ Marianna?
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Re: 2nd Maine Cav Arty @ Marianna?