Neighbor found Rev War cannonball in her yard!

fredbug 67

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Oct 12, 2013
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Friday morning my neighbor was looking in a area of her yard that she never goes to. She saw a strange object half buried in the ground. What she found was either a shot put from the neighboring high school or a cannonball.
A friend/ history buff with contacts in Gettysburg Pa. Brought the object there yesterday and 2 different experts said it is indeed a cannon ball.
They identified it as a 9 pound ball dating from approx. 1782- most probably French made.
We live in Mahwah,NJ an area of much Revolutionary War activity. I have a couple pictures and went there to measure it with my digital caliper,but her friend still has it,so I didn't get to measure it.
I searched the immediate area with my detector to see if there were more,but have not located any others. I have included pictures of the cannon ball and the hole it was pulled out of. ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1432499520.431615.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1432499540.740424.jpg ImageUploadedByTreasureNet.com1432499564.527336.jpg
 

Upvote 16

Jacobsdt

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Jan 9, 2012
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That is a great find, a canon ball is definitely on my list of things to find.
 

texjim

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Feb 3, 2009
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Amazing that it has been sitting on top of the ground god knows how long. Thanks for sharing
 

Rick (Nova Scotia)

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May 8, 2008
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I would expect a lot more rust on iron lying in dirt for over 200 years.
 

MuckyBottles

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Jun 19, 2013
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Ironic that you posted this, my first ever metal detecting find 20+ years ago was 4 4lb'ers in my parents backyard in the Morristown NJ area...still have them too, my parents repurposed them into door stoppers
 

MuckyBottles

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Jun 19, 2013
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Bone Valley, Florida
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Friday morning my neighbor was looking in a area of her yard that she never goes to. She saw a strange object half buried in the ground. What she found was either a shot put from the neighboring high school or a cannonball.
A friend/ history buff with contacts in Gettysburg Pa. Brought the object there yesterday and 2 different experts said it is indeed a cannon ball.
They identified it as a 9 pound ball dating from approx. 1782- most probably French made.
We live in Mahwah,NJ an area of much Revolutionary War activity. I have a couple pictures and went there to measure it with my digital caliper,but her friend still has it,so I didn't get to measure it.
I searched the immediate area with my detector to see if there were more,but have not located any others. I have included pictures of the cannon ball and the hole it was pulled out of. View attachment 1165892 View attachment 1165893 View attachment 1165894

Also, since the area you live in is my backyard, it could possibly be from a french cannon from Lafayette
 

BigWaveDave

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Nov 22, 2013
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that's a great story and find...awqesome
 

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