The Whitworth Rifles of the Naval Battery on Morris Island
Four 5-Inch Whitworth Muzzle Loading Rifles were captured by the US Navy when the Blockade Runner S.S. Princess Royal was captured by USS Unadilla off of Charleston. Two of the four survive. One at West Point bearing a plaque stating that it was used on Morris Island. The other is at the Washington Navy Yard where it may have been tested in the experimental battery there.
The Mersey Gun at the Washington Navy Yard
The “Mersey Gun”, a 12-Inch Smoothbore manufactured from wrought iron by the Mersey Ironworks of Liverpool, England was ordered as a replacement for the “Peacemaker” which disastrously burst aboard USS Princeton in 1844. It is displayed at the Washington Navy Yard.
2.9-Inch Blakely Rifles at the South Carolina Military Museum
Two 2.9-Inch Blakely Rifles recovered in 1974 from the wreck of SS Georgiana are displayed at the South Carolina Military Museum in Columbia, South Carolina. Georgiana was attempting to run the blockade into Charleston on March 19th, 1863 when she was intercepted by blockading vessels including the Yacht America, USS Housatonic, and USS Wissahickon.
The 150-Pounder Armstrong of Fort Fisher
A 150-Pounder Armstrong Rifle which has been displayed at West Point since 1865 was mounted at Fort Fisher during the American Civil War. A replica represents the cannon at Fort Fisher State Historic Site today.
4-Inch Fawcett Preston Rifle at Fort Branch
A 4-Inch Rifle manufactured by Fawcett, Preston, and Company of Liverpool in 1862 is part of the extraordinary collection of artillery, carriages, and many other artifacts recovered from the Roanoke River near Fort Branch and presently displayed at the site in North Carolina.
4-Inch Fawcett Preston Rifle in Raleigh, North Carolina
A 4-Inch Rifle manufactured by Fawcett, Preston, and Company of Liverpool which was used by the Confederates near Fort Fisher until captured by the US Navy on August 23rd, 1863 is displayed in Raleigh, North Carolina. This cannon may (or many not) be a “Blakely Rifle”.
The 12-Pounder Whitworth Rifle at Fort Fisher
A 12-Pounder Whitworth Breech Loading Rifle is displayed at Fort Fisher. This Whitworth was captured on August 23rd, 1863 by the United States Navy after two actions fought around the wreck of the blockader runner Hebe.
4.5-Inch Blakely Rifles at Fort Pulaski
Two 4.5-Inch Blakely Rifles are displayed at Fort Pulaski near Savannah, Georgia. These two Blakelys were part of the original Confederate defenses of the fort, and they were captured by the US Army in 1862 when the fort surrendered.
The 3.5-Inch Blakely at Marion Square
A cannon that might be a 3.5-Inch Blakely is displayed at the “Horn Work” in Marion Square in Charleston, South Carolina.
The Banded 12-Pounder at the Powder Magazine
Preserved outside the Powder Magazine Museum in Charleston, SC is a rifled and banded 12-pounder originally made by and for the British during the reign of George III!