SPRINGFIELD, Ill., - A long-lost Civil War cannon has found its
way back to the Illinois State Military Museum in Springfield after more than
30 years.
"I feel a sense of victory," said Army Lt. Col. Mark Whitlock, director of
the Illinois State Military Museum. "I feel that the cannon is an important
piece of Illinois military history and it makes me feel good that we got it
back."
The cannon was originally donated to the museum in 1865 by Lt. Col. Edward
Kitchell, the regiment commander of the 98th Illinois Mounted Infantry.
Kitchell and his Soldiers discovered the cannon buried near a small pox
hospital in Georgia. Then in the late 1970s the cannon was borrowed for a
Civil War reenactment and was never returned to the Illinois State Military
Museum.
In 1997, Whitlock discovered a picture and an article regarding the missing
cannon. Whitlock started digging through files to find out what might have
happened. Four years later, he wrote an article seeking information in case
someone came across the missing artifact.
"I was looking into something that no one else had any knowledge of," said
Whitlock. "I was disappointed that we had a Civil War cannon once and we let
it get away and may never see it again. It is an artifact that belongs to the
state of Illinois, not in private hands."
Whitlock put the file away in hopes that someday it would resurface.
Then on Aug. 17 Whitlock received a phone call from a Federal Bureau of
Investigation agent in Georgia, who said they found the cannon.
"I was in disbelief and absolutely excited," said Whitlock. "It was exciting
to see the cannon for the first time in person. I had only seen it in black
and white photos and had no idea what color or the condition it was in."
The cannon was returned to the museum on Sept. 14 and is now on display at
the Illinois State Military Museum on the first floor for public viewing.
Once the museum can raise enough funds, the cannon will be treated and
preserved and placed on the second floor of the museum as the feature
artifact for the Civil War where it originally began.