And, remember, that if you ever found and old 150+ year-old shell from that long-ago war, handle with care, or better, don't handle at all. According to the article, they have heard of 2-3 shells exploding after being found and someone was killed.
The shell was apparently live based on the way it blew up. (And there it was bouncing around in the bed of the service truck.) The Prairie Grove State Park is hopping mad about the shell's quick destruction. They say that they've had live shells donated before and later had them disarmed in U.S. arsenals.
They actually have two of the James Rifle shells on display and eight in storage. Each one is 9 inches long and 3.8 inches in diameter.
In 2004, two USMC ordnance disposal experts disarmed a rare Britten shell from the wreck of the CSS Alabama off Cherbourg, France.
At the Battle of Prairie Grove, the Confederates had two cannons capable of firing a 14-pound James Rifle shell. They were Union-made and had been captured at the Battle of Lone Jack, Missouri, in August 1862. The Union Army had ten of the James Rifles at the Battle of Prairie Grove. These were the largest-diameter shells fired that day on either side.
Thousands of the shells were fired and their fragments are frequently found, but it is rare to find one intact. This one was apparently dropped before firing or lost.
--Old Secesh
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