Mountain Howitzer

At Fort Laramie we were treated to an interpretive talk about the Mountain Howitzer and it’s role, actually it’s uselessness in the wide open spaces of Wyoming. But the fascinating thing is that it is the little baby brother of the Twelve Pound Napoleons that were used during the Civil War. The two cannon though very different in size utilized the same ammunition and firing sequence. So besides learning about the role of Ft Laramie in the formation of The American West, we got a lesson on the responsibilities of Steve’s GG-Grandfather as an artilleryman in the Civil War!