The Old Cannon at the Canal

scotto

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#1
A member (Crawfish) has sent in a picture showing the old cannon that use to be located near the Canal. I remember it being beside the Angus Inn, but not in this good a shape. Wonder what happened to it?? If anyone else has some info or more pictures, please share it with the rest of us.
Thanks again to Crawfish for this exceptionally good picture. :tbu:
Scotto
 

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scotto

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#2
Member Drogo has sent in many very good pictures of the Beach, one picture shows some of the cannon that use be located near the canal.

Drogo also sent this message, "An old resident of the beach is the lady in the front row second from the left. That is Gert Perry. The Perry House."

Thanks to Drogo. :tbu:
Scotto
 

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Thanks to Historian Colwyn Beynon,:tbu: we may of found the "cannon". The Beach cannon is actually a 77 mm Field Gun from WW1. Colwyn believed that the Gun was located at the Dundurn Park Military Museum, so I went there for a look. It was at one point but was moved to a City of Hamilton storage facility when many of the Park's rusting relics where removed for safety reasons. There was some literature at the Museum giving a little history of our Beach Gun.

According to a Register of War Trophies found at the National Archives of Canada this gun was captured by the 18th Battalion of London, Ontario. After its arrival in Hamilton it was placed in Dundurn Park facing what is today York Boulevard, a short distance east of the present day Military Museum building.
The jewel among the City's war trophies was a 210 millimetre German Heavy Howitzer.
Hamilton was also given a German 77 millimetre field gun. This gun, called a "Whizz-Bang" by Canadian soldiers during the war because of the sound it made when fired, had been manufactured in 1917 by the Krupp Company and was placed in La Salle Park, near the water's edge.

The oldest gun in the City's collection was a German 77 millimetre field gun placed on a British naval mounting for use as a deck gun on a British merchant ship. The gun barrel had been manufactured by Krupp in 1908 for the Prussian Field Artillery. The barrel, as was common on German guns before the outbreak of war in 1914, was elaborately engraved
with decorative motifs including the Prussian Eagle with the motto "Pro Glorian et. Patria" (For Glory and Country), and the cypher (initials) of Kaiser Wilhelm II with the motto "Ultima Ratio Regis" (The Final Argument of a King). Upon being taken into British service the gun had been re-marked with a crown and the initials G.V.R.I beneath the crown. These initials were the cypher of King George V of Britain and stood for the latin phrase "George V Rex et Imperator" (George V King and Emperor). Upon its arrival in the city this gun was placed on the Burlington Bay Beach Strip along Lake Shore Road, about three hundred yards from the Burlington Canal Lift Bridge, on the Lake Ontario side of the road at the Hamilton end of the Bridge.
The City also received a 150-millimetre German Light Field Howitzer. This gun had been manufactured in 1916 by Krupp and according to the Register of War Trophies it was captured by the 20th Battalion of Toronto. Upon its arrival City officials had this gun placed at the north west corner of Sanford Avenue and Barton Street East in Hamilton. Completing the collection was a 77-millimetre German Field Gun which was placed outside of Hamilton's Memorial School on Ottawa Street. Records do not indicate which unit captured this gun but do show that it was not sent to Hamilton until 1925.
This article will be continued in the Spring 2002 Issue of The Hamilton Military Review.
Michael Forestell Historical Interpreter Hamilton Military Museum
 

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scotto

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#4
The 77mm Gun has been located by City staff and they have sent in a couple of pictures. If it is the same one and it seems to be, the Gun looks to be in very good shape. :tbu: Maybe we will see it back on the Beach Strip were it belongs.
 

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scotto

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#9
Gun Update

I have been getting a few inquiries about the progress of the Gun. Due to regulations from the war time artifacts people the City cannot just set the Gun back on the Beach without first restoring it to a proper condition.(Added below) It is very costly to get this work done and we all know there isn't a lot of free cash around these days. Our friend Colwyn has sent me a contact who may be able to help with the recondition at a much cheaper end cost.
We will see.

CITY OF HAMILTON CIVIC MUSEUMS
CONSERVATION
Re: ARTILLERY RESTORATION
Object: German 77mm Field Gun, World War 1 Model 1916
Fabricated by Friedrich Krupp in 1917
Location: Dundurn Park(Now stored elsewhere)
Research
Before the restoration process begins, historical research is required to determine the desired end product with accuracy. Paint colours and sheens, removable fittings, and replacement parts will have to be researched in order to restore the piece to an accurate representation of this gun. Phil White, conservator at the Canadian War Museum, may be able to provide guidance in this area. Budget may be the determining factor where decisions regarding replicas of original parts must be made.
Treatment
Museum quality conservation treatment would be prohibitively expensive, and not recommended since the gun will be displayed outdoors. The following are general guidelines for a modified version of a museum quality restoration:
1. Leave all original material intact. Carry out repairs to damaged/deteriorated components only with techniques and materials approved in advance by a conservator.
2. All new surface coatings must appear authentic in colour and finish, based on research.
3 Coat all working surfaces (which would normally have been oiled/greased) with a hard, rust-inhibiting film, such as LPS HardCoat Corrosion Protectant. This film resembles oil but it is not soft or tacky, and it is removable with solvents.
4. Replace missing components with accurate replicas. Permanently mark all new components as replicas in an inconspicuous area, e.g., with an "R/1994" stamped on the surface.
5. Once disassembled and treated, render movable parts immovable during reassembly with the application of a high-strength, threadlocking adhesive such as Loctite Threadlocker 272 (removable with heat and hand tools).
6. Leave compact surface rust and layers of adherent, non-original paint intact to continue their preservative functions, except where these surfaces might interfere with the bonding of repair materials (e.g., epoxy or polyester resins). Remove loose paint and rust mechanically or by means of organic air abrasive media. Paint compact surface rust with a high-quality, slow-drying red oxide primer before applying the finish coats of paint.
7. Use slow-drying, industrial enamel (alkyd) paints for repainting all surfaces.
More specific treatments:
1. Thoroughly clean the bore of the barrel, then coat it with a solvent cutback, rust preventive compound designed for severe conditions, e.g., Tectyl 891 from Valvoline.
2. The iron tires on the artillery wheels should not be painted. Remove the black paint and coat the underlying compact rust substrate with a rust converter such as Rust Oleum Rust Reformer or Loctite Extend. The condition of these areas should be monitored.
3. The rotted parts of the proper right wooden wheel will have to be strengthened in order to support the gun carriage. Introduce new material (wood/metal) in an inconspicuous manner so that it will be undetectable after priming and painting. Avoid mild steel hardware in favour of stainless steel. Avoid two dissimilar metals in contact with each other.
Records of the complete restoration process, including photodocumentation, specific materials and sources, and methods are required of the restorers) to be presented on completion of work. ...
Display
The gun, if it is displayed outdoors, should be on a platform and under shelter in order to avoid the destructive elements of nature. The restoration of this piece would be senseless if it were to be displayed without these minimum preventive measures.
Maintenance
It is essential that a plan for maintaining the restored gun be established and that funds are in place in order to ensure its long term preservation. The plan should include regular inspection of the piece, rotation of the wheels, upkeep of the painted surfaces, recoating of the iron tires, etc., as well as upkeep of the shelter. Guidelines for maintaining the piece should be required of the contract restorers).
Therese Charbonneau Conservator Cultural Services 1998
 
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