The Big Guns Helps Rescue Two Stolen Howitzers
As reported in the June Civil War News
Two artillery enthusiasts who are owners of The Big Guns alerted authorities when they discovered that a mountain howitzer, Alger & Co. number 210, was being advertised for sale at auction in late April. The gun was listed on Wayne Stark's National Register of Surviving Civil War Artillery as having been stolen from the Wabasha, Minnesota, courthouse in 1980. A companion mountain howitzer stolen from Wabasha at the same time, Ames Co. number 37, has also been recovered from the current possessor. Both the cannon were part of the estate of a Connecticut collector, but it is not known how they came into his possession.
Given to Wabasha by a 1915 act of Congress, the tubes were stolen on September 22, 1980. Authors Edwin Olmstead and Wayne Stark were able to provide local authorities with the markings when they learned of the theft, but there were no leads in the case until the firm of James D. Julia Inc., of Fairfield, Maine, began to publicize its auction of firearms to take place on April 27-29. There was a great deal of interest in the Alger howitzer; estimates of the likely price for the piece ranged from $15,000 to $30,000. However, two readers of The Big Guns found it listed there and alerted Wabasha Police Chief Dave Kruger of the proposed sale. He contacted the Julia auction house, which was very cooperative in returning the gun to its rightful owner. The Ames piece, which had been willed to another collector, was then tracked down and will be returned. Wabasha declined to consider selling either piece.