French & Indian War small canister ball, recovered at Fort William Henry

This is a nice early piece coming out of an old Revolutionary War and French & Indian War collection. Being offered is a canister ball that measures slightly under 1-inch. These balls would be part of a canister shell, which when fired was like a shotgun blast (see pictures). It is part of a cache of boxed dug artifacts that were identified and put into separate boxes 50+ years ago. This one was recovered years ago at Fort William Henry, NY.

Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George, in the province of New York. The fort's construction was ordered by Sir William Johnson in September 1755, during the French and Indian War, as a staging ground for attacks against the French position at Fort St. Frédéric.

It was part of a chain of British and French forts along the important inland waterway from New York City to Montreal and occupied a key forward location on the frontier between New York and New France. The ball remains in nice condition and has been coated for preservation. It comes in the acrylic display case pictured.

Revolutionary War and French & Indian War artifacts have always been difficult to find. With the 250th anniversary of the nation's founding this year, there is a revitalized interest. Just about all Revolutionary War relics and artifacts are in demand, which only adds to their scarcity and price.