Interpretive Panel: Ironclad Killer

Wayside panel: Ironclad Killer

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Tactile Exhibit

In 1844, a young officer, Thomas Jackson Rodman, transformed the design of iron guns. He created a cannon barrel that cooled from the inside, so the gun could shoot farther without exploding. This state-of-the-art Rodman Gun could hurl a 450-pound, or 204-kilogram, ball of iron up to 3 miles, or 5 kilometers, away. The artillery could punch through the 10-inch, or 25-centimeter, hull in an ironclad Confederate ship.

Tactile caption (tactile not shown)

Feel the mass of a 15-inch, or 35-centimeter, cannon ball. Each ball had 2 ears, or dimples, for the shell hook to lift it.