Recently, while plowing his garden, my cousin unearthed an "interesting rock." To his surprise, he had found a cannonball two-hundred feet from US Highway 119 in Leasburg, North Carolina. I was "gifted" this interesting item a few days later.
After researching and consulting with a friend who is expert in early North Carolina history and historic artillery and firearms, we concluded the "rock" is a British nine-pound solid shot from the Revolutionary War. In the late 1770s and early 1780s, the land where the cannonball was found was owned by my fifth-great grandfather, William Richmond, who purportedly was a Captain in the local militia.
Could this be an artifact of the Revolutionary War? Might it have been shot by General Cornwallis's forces during the "Race to the Dan"? Interesting to think about, to say the least. Next month I will have the rust removed and hopefully learn more.
Sterling Carter
Leasburg, North Carolina
June 2016
June 2016
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