One of the favorite places to pose for a photograph in Harvey County has been on the cannon in Military Park at the corner of Broadway and Oak.
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| Posing on the cannon, 1923 Empress Tedlock is on the far right. |
The cannon was placed there in 1898-1899, and several generations of Kansans have posed, climbed and crawled on this relic from the Civil War.
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| Civil War Veterans next to the cannon in Military Park, Newton 1898 |
The cannon was used during the Civil War in "coastal defense". In the late 1800s, the Judson Kilpatrick Post No. 36, and the local chapter of the G.A.R. worked with Congressman Chester I. Long to get the cannon placed in Newton. In a ceremony on October 4, 1899, the cannon was presented to the mayor of Newton, George W. Young, by Hon. J. G. Wood, Topeka. The park, previously known as "East Park", was renamed "Military Park" at this time.
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| Military Park Cannon, ca. 1900 Cooper School in the background |
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| 37 "Young Patriots" Military Park, 1907 |
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| Military Park, Newton, ca. 1923 Unidentified woman |
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| Military Park, Newton, 1916 Lucile Mitchell Miller & John |
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| Military Park, Newton, ca. 1930 Unidentified woman |
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| Military Park, Newton, ca. 1930 Nellie McAuliff |
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| Military Park, Newton, 2010 |
Do you have any photos to share of friends and family posing on the cannon? We love to see them!
Interested in learning more about Civil War veterans in Harvey County? Visit our web page for information available in Archives.
Enjoyed the article and rememberance. When i was 6 my friend Kenny Granger went to catacism classes at St Mary's. he and I would ride bikes there then i would spent about an hour and a half playing in the park sometimes on the Cannnon. We always tried to remove the top cannon ball, it would move but was bolted down.
ReplyDeleteThis comment takes a lot of effort and requires logging into a blog site(google acount) Usually don't have time durring the day to reapond.
ReplyDeleteDavid,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your persistence. I love the memory you shared. I know from my visits to Newton Grade Schools that the cannon balls continue to challenge the boys of Newton. When I show them pictures of places in Newton, they always recognize the cannon and almost always one will ask - 'how are those cannon balls stuck on?'
I'm sorry about the effort required to comment. Probably not much I can do about it, since it probably has more to do with the host site for the blog. Thanks for making me aware of it though. Comments on facebook for the blog are also appreciated if that is easier.
Kris