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Last canon firing
One of my more interesting duties as Fort Vancouver volunteer is demo’ing black powder. Last weekend, we did rifle and canon firing. My duties were firing the canon. Pictures below.
The canon is an 1841 Mountain Howitzer, very popular in the day as it was effective, light, and transportable. It could be broken down and carried on two horses or mules. It was optimized for firing explosive shells as well as spherical case and canister. Its range was about 1,000 yards. It was popular in the Civil War, especially in the west because it did not require roads to transport.
The 1841 Mountain Howitzer
Ready for action
Cleaning the barrel
Waiting for the charge to be delivered
Ready for the Fire command
FIRE!
And from the other side….
Memorial Day Gun Salute
Fort Vancouver has a gun and cannon salute to Memorial Day, using vintage rifles, pistols, and a cannon. I took some pictures to show some of the people we work with, and of the firing itself. High speed photos showed some interesting things not usually visible.
Picture taken just as Luda pulls the trigger
You can just see the smoke from the flash pan
Firing, just after the bullet leaves the rifle
Mike firing his revolver. Note the smoke blowing back as well as forward.
Jeff gives a pull on the firing cord....
Cannon firing. Note the primer material blowing upwards from the firing hole.
Aaron, our fearless leader
Cassie, during her presentation
Jeff and Luda, at ease
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