double barreled cannon

kgrove1

Our kids loved pretending to fire the cannon. Definitely should make a point to see it and read about its history while walking downtown.

pesheff

Southern ingenuity, or why the South didn't win the Civil War. =) Located outside the Athens municipality (city hall).

BinAthensGA

You pretty much have to see this, and take your visitors too, to see this cannon, one of two things in Athens that made it onto the Ripley's Believe It Or Not pages. Nice photo op, especially in spring, when the azaleas bloom around City Hall. As a photographer, the sun is too harsh early in the morning, wait til after 10 am to go.

KABC1980

This is just something fun to check out. Town landmark with an interesting quirky history. Stop by read the sign and pose for a picture on your way to eat.

819austinc

My girlfriend and I stopped by here on our first day in Athens after going by "The tree that owns itself." It is very neat! I love history so reading about it was just fantastic. If you stop by the cannon there is a parking deck a block or two up and I would suggest going to the top of that because it gives a great view of the downtown area of Athens. The first thirty minuets are free so it costs you nothing to go up to the top.

679robertn

Made during a sad period in American history, the cannon is an interesting reminder that people are always inventing devices to try to kill other people with whom they disagree. It is also a reminder that not all inventions work, and can be dangerous to the inventors! (I believe one or two were killed trying to make it fire correctly.)

LewisS475

If you're interested in devices designed to kill people that never worked this is a great sight. Otherwise, it's a piece of scrap iron- forget it.

kenimler

I have to say, I never even knew such a thing was invented. Great idea but needed some work in the day. Never did get it to work properly. Great history.

allyn99

Its a double-barreled Cannon, what more is there to say? Close to all the action, and close to the hotel Indigo where we stayed. We walked by it a dozen times.

tammyl914

That's probably why I loved it because it was a failed invention....more towns should celebrate this stuff. And, if you're a northern like me, I find it funny that the plaque doesn't call it the "Civil War" but the war between the states...at least it doesn't say the war of "Northern Aggression."

9flexm

It's a cannon with two barrels. The idea was that there'd be a chain strung between the two balls, so as to cut down some Yankees on the battlefield. My FIL came all the way to Athens from Arizona to check it out for himself. As I recall the thing never worked right- they couldn't time the fuses closely enough for it to be effective. For a much more interesting historical five minutes, ask someone to point you toward the Chicopee Complex. UGA uses it for office space now, but in its heyday it was a very well-fortified Confederate armory with lots of novel and innovative features.

832MelissaC832

You have to visit the double barreled cannon when you are in town. It is fun to have pictures made with it also. A unique piece of history.

sseaton68

Displayed at the Town Hall in downtown Athens is a double barreled cannon from the Civil War (aka The War of Northern Aggression) which failed utterly during a test fire and was never used. If you're in Athens, it's a great photo op. Whenever we take friends or family to a Georgia game, we always make sure to take a photo in 3 places; the Arch, Sanford Stadium and the Double Barreled Cannon.

Leslieonthego

This is a fun find in downtown Athens. A true story and a great way to display the failure behind the cannon. We loved seeing it displayed.

FionaSue

The DBC is nice to visit during the Athen's Famer's Market, which meets there on Wed. in the summer and fall from 4-6pm. It's a nice relaxed atmosphere with lots of interesting locally grown food to buy. The cannon is in the shade and is picturesque.