Have you ever visited a history museum or a battlefield with your school, when the teacher would give you a cannonball to hold and demonstrate how heavy it was, describing the sounds of battles and explosions in the open field? These experiences encouraged people to think, and provided a glimpse into our history and the physical reminders of conflicts that defined a country.
Cannonballs, the huge iron balls that used to roll out of the barrels of cannons, are typical relics of warfare of earlier centuries. Its basic yet effective structure was instrumental in battles from the medieval period up to the 19th century. Made from solid or hollow iron, these round shaped projectiles were used to knock down walls, disperse the enemies and to pierce through the sides of the enemy ships.
Cannonballs provide a rich understanding of how wars have been fought and the technologies used in the course of history. Every cannonball found or conserved today has a tale of ancient battles and the unrelenting search for military improvement. They were not just weapons of the warfare but also means that played a role in determining the fate of major battles and thus history. Their application and evolution offer an interesting insight into the creativity and adaptability of the military engineers of the past.
To those who collect antiques, an old cannonball is a precious find, a piece that tells a story of great history. People keep these artifacts as trophies for their historical value and the tales that are told by the rust marks on the items. But it is important that collectors do not mishandle these pieces as some of the older cannonballs may still contain unexploded explosives
Thinking about the cannonball, we recall that people are capable of both dеstruсtiоn and innovation. Nowadays, as we showcase these relics in museums or preserve them as antiques, they become sources of information and topics for discussion that can pique the curiosity of people and make them more aware of history.
In conclusion, whether one considers cannonballs to be valuable collectibles or relics of the past, they remind us to look into the past to learn more about our forebears’ victories and tribulations. They urge people to protect and cherish the culture and history so that the coming generations may be able to understand and feel it as we do.
Man digging in his backyard makes the last discovery he ever expected to find
When a man named John Sims made a decision to buy a house in Tucson, Arizona, from a friend of his, he never imagined the purchase would lead to an astonishing discovery.
Once the deal was done, John’s friend mentioned that there was a rumor about the place that there was something mysterious under the ground.
John didn’t give it much thought at the time, but as time passed by, he became more and more interested to unravel the mystery.
He first started exploring the yard by digging four holes on four different sides, but he found nothing. He then thought about it and figured it out that if there was nothing under the grass, there could definitely be something under the bricks. The next step was to take a closer look at municipal records and learn more of when his house had been built. In those records, it said that a company that went by the name Whitaker Pools built a strange structure on the property in 1961. It was now determined that there was indeed something buried there, which made John even more eager to explore the place.
In order to know where to start digging again, he hired consultants with metal detectors. When the detectors began to go off, he was able to mark the spots with Xs.
After he started digging at the marked places, he stumbled upon something metal, but as he couldn’t possibly know what it was, he didn’t proceed. It could be electric wires, a water pipe, or a septic tank, and he didn’t want to take the risk of damaging anything.
In the days that followed, he dug with precision and stumbled upon what looked like an entrance to a hatch. As he bent down, a metal lid opened. But as there was a possibility of gas fumes or mold spores, he left the lid open for a couple of days for the potential gases to waft out and had the air tested for mold.
The following morning, John took a look inside the hatch and found a spiral staircase that was headed downwards.
As a captain of the Rural/Metro Fire Department, he needed someone around in case the lid fell back in, so he gathered a crew. The first thing they decided to do was to repair and reinforce the concrete structure surrounding the stairs and set up Sonotube cardboard around the entrance to ensure that they do not damage anything.
In order to provide proper lighting and in order to be able to use tools, the crew installed an electric line. They also installed a black pipe to funnel fresh air into the shaft.
The work around the structure was done. Now they needed to secure the spiral staircase.
John was the first one to explore the inside of his backyard. Once he reached the bottom, he knew their work was done and they didn’t need to do any more digging. The underground structure was bare, but it was obvious that it represented a nuclear bomb shelter.
The shelter was built during the cold war between USA and the Soviet Union. At the time, the company mentioned above, Whitaker Pools, turned out to expand their business to bomb shelters.
This wasn’t the sole shelter in the area, however.
Tucson was once a rocket town that held 18 ballistic missiles that were capable to travel across continents and destroy an area of 900 square miles. This was a top secret, and with the end of the cold war, the missiles were all disabled.
John’s discovery was of great significance. Once he shared all about it on Reddit, many media outlets were quick to pick up his story.
“I was really hoping it was going to be a little microcosm… a time capsule full of civil-defense boxes, radiation detectors, and cots and stuff like that,” John shared during an interview.
For those around the are who want to know if there is a nuclear shelter in their yard, John suggests looking up records of the City of Tucson or Pima County for information.
In case they do discover anything alike, John urges citizens to be extra cautious, just like he was. “Jumping into holes in the ground is generally not a good idea,” John said and explained that toxic air in a tunnel or a cave-in can easily incapacitate anyone.
It is John’s wish to restore the bomb shelter, but because that requires plenty of money, he set up a GoFundMe page. It is his priority to replace the staircase so that people can enter the shelter easily and explore the place.
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