32-Pounder Rifled Cannon

32-Pounder Rifled Cannon. . This is a reproduction 32-pounder cannon, 'similar to those at Fort Anderson during the Civil War. It is a Pattern 1846 gun. The term "32-pounder" refers to the weight of the iron shot it fired., In April 1861, when the U. S. Navy abandoned the Gosport Navy Yard at Norfolk, Confederate forces captured almost 1,200 heavy guns and distributed most of them to coastal fortifications. North , Carolina received 203 of these pieces of artillery, including at least eight transferred to Fort Anderson during the summer of 1862., Included were two Pattern 1846 guns, which were rifled but not I banded at nearby Fort Caswell. Rifled guns endured more stress during firing than smoothbore guns and were therefore more likely to burst at the breech if not reinforced or banded. The weak point in unreinforced rifles was at the vent, and they were usually fired with reduced powder charges to keep them from bursting. Although these rifled cannons had better accuracy than regular smoothbore guns, they did not have significantly better range due to reduced powder charges., (captions) , Specifications: , Bore diameter: 6.4 inches , Bore Length: 107.9 inches , Overall Length: 125.14 inches , Weight: 6,540 pounds , Powder Charge: 9 pounds , Range: 2,711 yards at 5" elevation, Officers and men of the 3rd Regiment Massachusetts Heavy Artillery stand next to their Columbiad guns, Fort Totten, Washington D.C., 1865.