WW I Howitzer - Forest Hills Cemetery, Reading, PA - Military Ground Equipment Displays on Waymarking.com

At the entrance to the Veterans' Section of the Forest Hills cemetery, are two large Howitzers sitting behind hedges. Some research shows these to be Model 1918 155mm "Schneider" Howitzer. The following is from the Olive Drab (visit link) website and describes how this gun came to be used by American forces.

Upon the entry of the United States into World War I, a shortage of American artillery required that certain US Army artillery units be equipped with the French 155mm Model 1917 Schneider Howitzer. Although it had many weaknesses for the role, the Schneider was used as the Division howitzer since no other was available in quantity. The Schnieder 155mm made an important contribution to Allied victory because it was in action when needed, despite any deficiencies.

Toward the end of the war, the howitzer was adopted by the United States using the M1917 howitzers supplied by the French government. When manufacturing in the US began under license of the design, it was renamed as the 155mm Howitzer Carriage, Model of 1918 (Schneider), retaining the name of the French arms manufacturing firm that built the original version.


The US production changes from the French model howitzer included:

Modified breech assembly
Straightened shield
Solid rubber tires
Pivoting spade
Improved firing mechanism
During their service life in the US military, additional changes were applied to both the M1917 and M1918 Schneider howitzers. In particular, a more modern high speed carriage was developed with metal wheels, pneumatic tires and air brakes. With this improvement, the WW I vintage howitzers could be towed at highway speeds by the prime mover trucks and tractors of the WW II period.

World War I ended before American units equipped with M1918 155mm Schneider were trained and transported to France. In the period between the World Wars, the M1918 Schneider was the standard US 155mm howitzer, shifted from Division to Corps and back as doctrine evolved. Upgrades to the carriage and gun were applied to most of the M1918 Schneider howitzers, with the work done at Rock Island Arsenal and commercial contractors. The 155mm Schnieder was finally superseded by the M1 155mm Howitzer early in World War II. However, actual availability of the M1 155mm howitzer grew slowly and the 155mm Schnieder (both M1917 and M1918) remained in service in US Army and USMC artillery units through the end of World War II.

Location restrictions: This display is in a cemetery which is closed from dusk to dawn.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   07/22/2018 pens66 visited it