Projectile or Reject pile?

[Royn2751]

I'm hoping for some help. Possibly Cannonball Guy can nail this down for me.
This is the third of these items I've dug in the same area over the past 3 years. This site is an open area presently used as athletic fields. It's been open as far back as the maps go. It has produced a KGII half penny, seated 1/2 Dime and numerous flat buttons. I've been told of Reales being found here in the past.
When I found the first one, I attempted to research it and surmised it was Civil War era canister shot.
The fly in the ointment is that the field is in NW NJ.
This weighs 4.95 ounces. It was definitely cast or molded, sprue and seams are evident. It measures 33mm or just shy of 1 5/16".
If anyone can help, I'd appreciate it.
Happy Digging.

 

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[TheCannonballGuy]

Royn2751 wrote:
> I'm hoping for some help. Possibly Cannonball Guy can nail this down for me.
> This is the third of these items I've dug in the same area over the past 3 years..
> When I found the first one, I attempted to research it and surmised it was Civil War era canister shot.

Happy to be of assistance... especially with unknown objects which might be in my "specialty area" of relic knowledge (pre-20th-Century military projectiles).

> The fly in the ointment is that the field is in NW NJ.

Wellll… we know that during the civil war, "state" troops (both US and CS) sometimes received training and practice with their weapons and ammunition in the state before they shipped out. So, it IS possible to dig civil war projectiles in locations far from any battle area.

Also... there was combat artillery action in New Jersey during the American Revolution and the War-of-1812. Please check to see if there was any artillery combat action during those wars at the location where you found this iron ball.

> This weighs 4.95 ounces. It was definitely cast or molded, sprue and seams are evident. It measures 33mm or just shy of 1 5/16".

Those precisely-measured (thank you very much) weight and diameter measurements put the ball within a hair of the size specifications for a civil war era 24-Pounder caliber Canister ball... and a RevWar/1812-War Quilted Grapeshot ball.

I should mention... your ball's precisely-measured "Diameter-to-Weight Ratio" proves it is made of cast-iron, not steel. There never were any steel Grapeshot or Canister-balls.

That being said:
It is VERY important to for me to mention that the "broken-off" casting-mold sprue visible in the photo of your ball is the crucial ID-clue that tilts my judgment toward it being a Military-projectile ball. Various kinds on non-Artillery balls can have a mold-seam, so the presence of a seam is not a "definitive" ID-clue. We artillery-ball collectors don't see a broken-off sprue on mill-balls/rock-crusher balls, Sports Shot Put balls, etc. But it is often seen on crudely made Grapeshot and Canister balls.

I should also mention:
The fact that you've found three of those same balls at that site, separately (not in the same hole or within a few feet of each other), "adds weight" to the likelihood that they are indeed fired Quilted-Grapeshot or Canister-balls.

Please return to this discussion thread after you've done diligent (extensive) research into whether there was a RevWar or 1812-War battle which involved artillery at the site where you dug that ball.

 

[A2coins]

Great info CBG nice relics OP

 

[ToddsPoint]

Either you know it or you don't. TheCannonballGuy knows it. Glad he is here. Gary

 

[creskol]

Either you know it or you don't. TheCannonballGuy knows it. Glad he is here. Gary

Me, too!

 

[Royn2751]

Thank you for your authoritative and prompt response.
Found these pictures of a CW "Coehorn" mortar and a canister shot.
I'll try to research the history of the location further and report my findings.
Regards to all who enjoy this great hobby.

 

[Reanm8er]

Primo find, congrats!

 

[BLK HOLE]

Looking more and more that you have a keeper!

 

[Royn2751]

I spent some time reading the history of the specific area where they were found. The closest spot where a battle was fought was a 1776 Loyalist raid on a tavern approx 8 miles away. There is no mention of any artillery being used.
Many militias were raised from the local communities during 1812 and CW eras but no recorded battles even remotely nearby.
Lots of notable military leaders came from this region and I believe that it can be surmised that this find is probably the result of volunteers/recruits training prior to moving into battle.
Kudos to Cannonball Guy for his expertise and willingness to share.

 

[PowerDubs]

I have also found a ball like this from the same fields. And crusty big old British copper as well as countless old flat buttons and oddly enough some silverware.

 

[PowerDubs]

Found another one today at the same location.

Ours weigh slightly more- 5.0 & 5.1oz

Same seam, flat spot on 2 ends. Rusty so def some sort of iron not lead. Rang 15-16 on the nox.

 

[PowerDubs]

Found another one today before my allergies kicked my ass and I went home.

 

[yaxthri]

Nice title rhyme anyway!

 

[NHBandit]

If it's any help with regards to the location I had a favorite hunting spot when I lived in New Hampshire at a very old public baseball field and found Civil War 3 ring bullets. Doing some research I found that it had been a muster field going back to the Revolution. My oldest coin I ever found was from that same park. An 1808 20 Reis coin from Brasil.