M1897 3.2-inch Steel Rifle - Field Artillery Museum - Fort Sill, Oklahoma
Posted by: gparkes
N 34° 39.943 W 098° 23.111
14S E 556330 N 3836145
The Field Artillery Museum located at Fort Sill in Oklahoma has a lot of very interesting items just waiting to be discovered by you.
Waymark Code: WM9E5H
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 08/08/2010
Views: 4
An information card near this cannon reads:
M1897 3.2-inch Steel Rifle
1898
Very similar in appearance to its predecessor, the M1897 featured a new breech and smokeless powder cartridges. The Spanish-American War rushed the development of this model forward. The M1897 saw service during the Boxer Rebellion where Reilly's Battery used theirs to blast down the gates of Peking. The gun had a range of 4,500 yards and a rate of fire of four rounds per minute.
Admission is free, and access to Fort Sill can be done through the visitor's gate. Be sure to have your license, registration and proof of insurance available, because you are almost certain to be asked for. From the gate, you can ask for direction. At you first stop, you can get a map of important sites on the base. Be sure to go to plan additional time to go to the Indian Cemeteries. There you will find the graves of different Indian Tribes, including Geranimo. There are many sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places, from the old fort, cemeteries, and aviation related locations. Fort Sill can easily be a place to visit for a couple hours, or for the entire day.