Spanish-American War Cannon Melted Down for War Effort-- Part 2

City and county memorials across the country were raided for anything of metal content. That included old tanks, cannons and other relics from previous wars. At the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., an Armstrong gun captured in the Civil War at Fort Caswell near Wilmington, NC, was melted down (however, the one the Army captured from nearby Fort Fisher wasn't).

The local chapter of the United Spanish War Veterans spearheaded the Bloomington scrap drive and even gave up the Spanish-American War cannon in Franklin Park. Interesting though, the World War I relics in Miller Park in the same town, including an 8.5-ton Austrian howitzer and a 5-ton US Army tank were left alone and can still be seen.

The Spanish-American War cannon had been dedicated in the park in 1900 after its capture near Santiago, Cuba, in 1898. It had been made in Barcelona, Spain.

It's a Whole War Effort. --GreGen