The 12 pound Mountain
Howitzer is a large caliber gun designed on a small scale.
Its short barrel and small carriage made it possible to
be disassembled and carried by pack animals, usually horses
or mules. This was a great asset in the steep mountains
of Tennessee and the Carolinas during the American Civil
War. The barrel would be placed on a special packsaddle
on the lead, or shaft mule. The carriage was placed on the
second, or carriage mule. Followed by ammunition mules,
carrying two ammunition chest each. See below:

The Mountain
Howitzers, nicknamed "Bull
Pups" by their Gunners, had a 38 inch bronze or iron
barrel with a 4.62 bore diameter. It had a range of about
900 yards.
Rounds shot include:
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Canister,
which consisted of 148 .69 caliber lead balls packed
in sawdust and placed in a tin plated iron cylinder.
This had the same effect as a huge shot-gun or scatter-gun
with a range of up to 400 yards. |
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Solid Shot,
which consisted of a solid "ball" attached with two
straps to a wood SABOT. The powder was attached to
the groove in the SABOT with a string. |
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Shell,
which consisted of a "ball" attached with two
straps to a wood SABOT. Typically a Bormann fuse
was used to set off the Shell.
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Charge |
Ball |
Elevation |
Range |
Remarks |
Pounds |
Degrees |
Yards |
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300 |
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Time, 2 Seconds |
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Time, 3 Seconds |
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Time, 2 Seconds |
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Time, 2.7 Seconds |
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Time, 3 Seconds |
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