12-Pounder Confederate Boat Howitzer at Gettysburg

May 22

12-Pounder Confederate Boat Howitzer - National Park Service Photo, Gettysburg National Military Park, GETT 31170

A 12-Pounder Confederate Bronze Boat Howitzer, Heavy, is in storage at Gettysburg National Military Park. It bears the Tredegar Foundry Number “1169” on its muzzle

Many thanks to friend of the page Seth Lemley for inquiring about this piece and forwarding the NPS Photos and description.

It is described by the Park Service as: “GETT 31170 - Dahlgren 12 lb. boat howitzer and naval carriage; the 63" long barrel is of bronze cast in a clay mold by the Tredegar Iron Foundry of Richmond, VA., the face of the muzzle is stamped with serial number "1169" (Tredegar No. 1169 should have been cast about April 17, 1861, the pages in the Tredegar Foundry Gun Book are missing between gun 1163 of April 9, 1861 and gun 1214 of May 22, 1861. Tredegar produced 456 bronze 12-pounder boat howitzers of which 37 survive to this day); the tube is mounted on an iron carriage with bronze slide, carriage measures 66" long x 19 1/4" wide, unique carriage mount of specifications of the standard Dahlgren boat howitzer, the bronze top carriage is stamped "LEEDS AND CO." of New Orleans (the largest manufacturing firm in the city), the elevation screw and carriage casters are reproductions; the howitzer was recovered from the Mississippi River at the site of the wreck of the Confederate ram CSS Louisiana (Carnegie Museum Accession number 4284, January 17, 1911).” National Park Service.

I am not sure what the NPS description is referring to when it mentions production run of “456 bronze 12 pounder boat howitzers of which 37 survive to this day.” There were certainly not that many boat howitzers produced by Tredegar. According to Olmstead et al., this is the only known survivor.

Also according to Olmstead, Tredegar produced at least six light and five heavy boat howitzers. Gosport Navy Yard is also known to have produced a small number while under Confederate management, three being captured at Baton Rouge.

Though Tredegar did not produce boat howitzers prior to the war, the boat howitzer seems to strongly resemble the US Navy model.

CSS Louisiana was an ironclad built at New Orleans. She was still incomplete and immobile when the US Navy fought her during the Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip. She was destroyed by her crew to prevent her capture after the battle.