Although USS Constitution underwent several periods of repair and rebuilding in her long career, her first true restoration took place in 1906 when a very modest sum of $100,000 was allocated by the U.S. Congress in that year’s naval appropriation bill. Naval Constructor Elliot Snow oversaw the work, which began in the summer of 1906 and was completed by August 1907. In that one year of work, Constitution was transformed from her days as a receiving ship to the appearance of an early 19th century sailing warship. This restoration, which was primarily cosmetic, included the removal of the enormous barn-like structure, the installation of a sailing rig, and the opening of the waist bulwarks. Added to the list of work accomplished was the casting of 54 guns for the spar and guns decks, thereby re-establishing an armament aboard (even if fake) for the first time in nearly 30 years.

It’s not quite clear to us today how Naval Constructor Snow determined the gun pattern for the spar and gun deck batteries. Snow’s purported research lead him to believe that there was no documentation left regarding Constitution‘s War of 1812 armament. Based on the guns that he ordered cast in the Charlestown Navy Yard in 1906, we think he instead relied on information from Louis Tousard’s late 18th-century treatise American Artillerist’s Companion and used a French pattern.

 

[Courtesy U.S. Navy]
An illustration from Louis Tousard’s American Artillerist’s Companion, printed in the late 18th century. The 24-pounder is the second gun from the right. Snow may have referred to this illustration when designing the gun patterns.
Snow understood the difference between short-barreled carronades typically found on warships’ upper decks and long-barreled, heavier guns found on the lower gun decks. Yet, when it came time to make the decision on Constitution‘s replica battery in 1906, the 54 guns were identical in pattern regardless of where they were to be placed on the ship. Even more perplexing, the spar deck guns were made approximately 8 inches longer than the gun deck guns. It has been speculated that the matching gun patterns were chosen as a cost-saving measure, but the difference in length makes this seem implausible. The French pattern guns remained on the ship for 20 years following the 1906 restoration.
A 1907 plan for a 24-pound gun and gun carriage, along with a schedule of material. [Courtesy Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston]
A plan for a 24-pound gun and gun carriage for the 1906 restoration. [Courtesy Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston]

[Courtesy National Park Service]
Replica guns from the 1906 restoration lined up along the spar deck c. 1915. [Courtesy National Park Service]
In 1925, the decision was made to extensively restore “Old Ironsides.” The 54 replica guns were removed and stored at the Navy Yard prior to the ship entering dry dock in June 1927. In his 1931 final report, Lieutenant John Lord, the restoration superintendent, noted:

“All of these guns [from the 1906 restoration] were discarded as they were not of the type carried by the Constitution.”

Lord had conducted his own research and came to the inaccurate conclusion that Constitution was originally outfitted with English guns in 1797. It turns out his guns, which were installed on the ship at the end of the restoration, were no more correct than Snow’s French pattern 1906 guns.

[Courtesy Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston]
USS Constitution undergoing repairs in dry dock in June 1927 at the beginning of the restoration. [Courtesy Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston]

Lack of funding was again an issue in the 1927-1931 restoration. By 1928, the decision was made to sell materials removed from the ship, including the replica guns, as a way to raise money for the restoration. Many of the items sold were inaccurately described as “original” (i.e. from the original construction of the ship in 1795-1797). This inaccurate description carried over to the identifying plaques of some of the 1906 guns as they found new homes across the country. According to a October 21, 1928 Daily Boston Globe article, “Selling Relics of Constitution:”

“There are 21 [guns] in all, and they will be sold at $150 each. They will not be replaced on the Constitution, as they are not exact copies of the original gun…They are being sought as ornaments for lawns and public parks.”

[Courtesy Boston Globe, ]
“Selling Relics of Constitution,” by C. A. Lawrence, October 21, 1928. [Courtesy the Daily Boston Globe]
Today, we know that at least 33 of the 1906 replica guns were dispersed across the United States and many now decorate courtyards, college campuses, cemeteries, and parks around the nation. Below is a list of locations where we know the guns exist today or have existed in the past, and we are constantly on the lookout for more. Have you seen a USS Constitution 1906 replica gun somewhere? Let us know!

 

USS Constitution Gun Locations Across the United States

Map of gun locations.
Map of gun locations.
  1. Massachusetts
    Approximately 14 guns in 10 locations throughout eastern Massachusetts (see map below).
  2. Orono, Maine
    2 guns on the University of Maine, Orono campus.
    Two guns on the University of Maine, Orono campus. [Courtesy umaine.edu. Photo by William Ellis.]
    Two guns on the University of Maine, Orono campus. [Courtesy umaine.edu. Photo by William Ellis.]
  3. Schoharie, New York
    1 gun purchased in 1928 by Peter A. Leinenger and displayed at the Schoharie Central School.
    One gun on display on the lawn outside Schoharie Central School in Schoharie, New York. The location of this gun was corrected and verified by blog reader Rick Sherman. [Photo courtesy Rick Sherman.]
  4. Newport, Rhode Island
    1 gun transferred to Newport c.1930 and originally placed at a local beach. It was moved to Fort Adams State Park sometime c. 1996.
  5. Wilmington, Delaware
    2 guns at the Nemours Mansion, Alfred I. DuPont Institute.
  6. Annapolis, Maryland
    2 guns were transferred from the Charlestown Navy Yard to the gates of the football field of the United States Naval Academy in the summer of 2008.
  7. Norton, Virginia
    1 gun donated to the City Municipal Building in 1933.
  8. St. Augustine, Florida
    2 guns at the Fountain of Youth Park.
  9. Lake Wales, Florida
    1 gun originally installed next to the city library and dedicated in 1933 by the Daughters of the American Revolution Lake Wales Chapter. The gun is now located outside the Lake Wales Depot Museum and was rededicated by the DAR on October 21, 2012.

    A 1933 article from a local Lake Wales, Florida newspaper noting the dedication of a gun by the Daughters of the American Revolution.

    []
    The current location of the gun outside the Lake Wales Depot Museum. [Courtesy DAR.org]
  10. Perrysburg, Ohio
    2 guns mounted in the Maumee River National Park as companion pieces to a statue of Oliver Hazard Perry.
  11. Galion, Ohio
    1 gun obtained by Galion Mayor Wilbur M. King in 1934. It was moved to the Galion Reservoir Park entrance in Crawford County and dedicated on October 15, 1967.
  12. Lexington, Missouri
    1 gun acquired in 1934 by the George Thomas Cullom Post, American Legion, and placed at Masonic College Park.
  13. Seattle, Washington
    2 guns placed at Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Evergreen-Washelli in 1929.
    One of two guns at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Evergreen-Washelli. [Courtesy washelli.com]
    One of two guns at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Evergreen-Washelli. [Courtesy washelli.com]
  14. Los Angeles, California
    1 gun presented to the City of Los Angeles by the Army and Navy Club Post No. 294 American Legion July 4, 1935. The gun is located in Pershing Square, Los Angeles, which is overseen by the Los Angeles Conservancy.

 

USS Constitution Gun Locations in Eastern Massachusetts

 

Gun locations in Massachusetts.

 

  1. Charlestown Navy Yard & Boston Common
    1 gun in the Charlestown Navy Yard.  2 were sold on Boston Common by Revere Legionnaires in 1942 as part of a WWII scrap metal drive. The current existence of the latter 2 guns is unknown.
  2. Chelsea
    1 gun at the Scrap Yard. This gun is shown in a photo published in the April 6, 1942 issue of Life magazine. It was purchased for $50 at the same WWII scrap metal drive.
  3. Medford:
    1 gun loaned by the U.S. Navy to the City of Medford in 1938. The loan was transferred to Tufts University in 1957.
  4. Belmont
    2 guns located outside the Belmont Lions Club.
    A gun located in Belmont, MA. [Courtesy subwaynut.com]
    A gun located in Belmont, MA. [Courtesy subwaynut.com. Photo by Jeremiah Cox.]
  5. South Boston
    1 gun at Fort Independence on Castle Island.
  6. West Roxbury
    1 gun at the Gethsemane Cemetery, placed there in 1932 in honor of Civil War Camp Andrews.
  7. Scituate
    1 gun located on the Cole Parkway side of the Scituate Federal Savings Bank.
    Photo courtesy of Peter McPherson, who works for Navl History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston. He read our blog post, which prompted him to look at this gun on display in Scituate and verify the correct location of this gun!
    Peter McPherson, an employee of Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston, read this blog post, which noted the possibility of a gun in an unknown location in Scituate. The post prompted McPherson to find this gun and verify that it was indeed from USS Constitution! [Photo courtesy of Peter McPherson.]
  8. New Bedford
    1 gun missing as of 1940.
  9. Gloucester
    1 gun at Stacy Boulevard. A second gun is also owned by the City of Gloucester.
    A gun at Stacy Boulevard in Gloucester. The rock next to the gun displays a 1932 bronze plaque dedicated to Nathaniel Haraden, a Gloucester native who served as USS Constitution‘s sailing master during the First Barbary War. [Image courtesy of Naval History & Heritage Command Detachment Boston]
  10. Rockport
    1 gun presented to the Sandy Bay Historical Society and dedicated on August 20, 1931. Today, it is located on the Community House lawn at 58 Broadway.
    A 1906 gun on the Community House lawn in Rockport. [Courtesy Google Maps]
    A 1906 gun on the Community House lawn in Rockport. [Courtesy Google Maps]

The Author(s)

Margherita Desy, Historian, Naval History and Heritage Command Detachment Boston
Historian, Naval History and Heritage Command

Margherita M. Desy is the Historian for USS Constitution at Naval History and Heritage Command Detachment Boston.


Kate Monea
Manager of Curatorial Affairs, USS Constitution Museum

Kate Monea is the Manager of Curatorial Affairs at the USS Constitution Museum.