French & Indian War small cannonball, recovered at Fort William Henry

This is a very nice early piece coming out of an old Revolutionary War and French & Indian War collection. Being offered is a smaller size cannonball that has a 1 1/4” diameter and weighs 6-ounces. These balls were fried from gunboats with 1-pounder swivel deck cannons (see pictures).

Swivel guns are among the smallest types of cannon, typically measuring less than 3 1/2 foot long and with a bore diameter of up to 1 ½”.  They can fire a variety of ammunition but were generally used to fire grapeshot and small caliber round shot. This one was recovered years ago at Fort William Henry, Lake George.

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 very nice condition, having some overall roughness, but no chipping or flaking. 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. I am already seeing a substantial increase in sales.