NDSU Artillery
Posted by: m&m O
N 46° 53.659 W 096° 47.905
14T E 667703 N 5195772
This display piece is in front of Bentson/Bunker Fieldhouse, which houses the ROTC unit at NDSU.
Waymark Code: WM123KF
Location: North Dakota, United States
Date Posted: 02/18/2020
Views: 3
This M5 Antitank Gun was placed here as a memorial, set up by the colleges Vet's Club with the help of the Fargo American Legion Post.
The plaque reads:
“A memorial to all N.D.S.C. veterans, may their contribution to college, state and nation help bring peace and brotherhood to mankind. N.D.S.C. Vet’s Club, November 11, 1958.”
The M5 Antitank gun owes its existence to German Panzer tanks heavy armor. In the battles for North Africa during World War II, American forces realized their current antitank weaponry was not capable of actually hurting German tanks.
In a testament to American ingenuity and sheer need, the U.S. Army's Ordnance Department modified the M3
3 inch Antiaircraft gun to fill the gap in American armament. They replaced the breach with a 105mm breach, installed a larger barrel with a modified chamber, and mounted the gun on an M6 artillery carriage originally designed to carry 105mm howitzer field artillery cannons.
The new cannon, used from 1943-1945, could penetrate up to three and one half inches of armor at nearly two kilometers. 2,500 M5s were produced during World War II; each piece was so heavy it required a six wheeled vehicle to tow it into position.
The listed parking area is the nearest visitor parking, but has few parking slots. If they are filled, a visitor parking lot has it's entrance at N 46° 53.725 W 096° 48.105, this is a pay lot.
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