This is the second time in the last year or so that government "officials" have destroyed excavated Civil War ordnance for no apparent reason other than ignorance. The first was the James shell at Prairie Grove and now this 32-pdr. As RD notes, both shells could have easily been deactivated by any one of several real experts scattered around the country. I'm a bit puzzled that a 32-pdr shell was at Danville, but I am not as well versed on the Civil War history of Danville as I am of other areas in Arkansas. That it was actually a land mine is highly unlikely. However, if it was a Confederate land mine ("torpedo") a true travesty was committed by destroying it as those types of ordnance are extremely rare and are worth several thousands of dollars. Does anyone know if it was simply a 32-pdr shell or an actual 32-pdr "torpedo" typical of those found around Spanish Fort and Blakeley, Alabama?

BG