With the Alger cannon now housed in Little Rock, the information regarding it is not accurate. The AMI shut down its military activities in the mid 1850's, George Alexander returned to farming and W. D. Leiper arrived to continue it as a boys school around 1857. This school was conducted until the war began. Co I 3rd Ark Inf (Tulip Rifles) did not march off to the war dragging their little cannon behind them. The organization of companies of infantry, cavalry, and artillery were well understood and no infantry company would have tried to take cannon with them. Also, most of the soldiers in Co I were not young little cadets but adult aged males. While some probably had attended AMI, most were just locals. All of this is corroborated by those of the time, especially one James Caldwell who graduated from AMI and served as Adjutant of the Corps of Cadets. He stated Alexander returned to farming, the military section shut down and all the military equipment was returned (to the arsenal no doubt). In a History of Education in Arkansas, the story of W. D. Leiper arriving and teaching there, not as a military but a boys school is also corroborated. Perhaps there was a desire at sometime in the past to try and "hitch a ride on the coattails of VMI" and create a wonderful story about the cadets all marching off to war. However, there is no period documentation of this and the best credentials are the statement of Caldwell. While some may hang on to the propagated story, I feel it only distorts the true history of the AMI and the cannon.