In the summer of 2010, archaeologists investigated a Civil War cannon emplacement in Florida’s Torreya State Park along the Apalachicola River.

In 1862, the Confederate government of Florida made it a priority to defend the Apalachicola, which led to the manufacturing heart of the south at Columbus, Georgia. To accomplish this, obstructions were placed in the river and a series of defensive gun emplacements, with massive cannons, were set up.

One of these gun batteries was at a site called Hammock Landing. Here archaeologists have found a wide variety of remains from this gun emplacement, including a heavy floor timber -- with a large iron spike driven into it. This spike was probably used to pivot the gun.

Also found were the still-intact wooden walls built to support the magazine, where gun powder was kept, along with several smaller artifacts associated with firing the cannon.

Written and Produced by the University of West Florida, the Florida Public Archaeology Network and the WUWF Public Media.