Will Hamilton’s hidden cannons return to public view?

Hamilton's historical cannons seem like the perfect outdoor artifacts.

The painted cast-iron barrels are largely impervious to the weather. And weighing in at thousands of pounds each, the War of 1812-era guns are just too heavy to steal.

But over the last few years, the city has gradually moved five different cannons into storage - most recently, the prominent pair of 24-pounder guns that, until March, guarded the landward approaches to Dundurn Castle from in front of the Hamilton Military Museum.

The city would like to put them back on display, said manager of heritage resource management John Summers - but figuring out how to do so safely and in proper historical context will not happen fast.

Part of the issue is the carriages that those cannons were mounted on historically are not viable for modern display," said Summers. They're reproductions ... they don't last. They rot, they fall down and they become a safety hazard."

The feared collapse of old wooden carriages prompted the most recent cannon removals as well as the storage of two smaller, nine-pounder Dundurn guns a few years ago. Another single cannon was also tucked into storage during renovations to Battlefield House Museum in Stoney Creek.

The next time the city drags the heavy guns out of storage - typically with the help of a crane - Summers said he also wants to provide proper interpretive context" at their new homes.

Where did they come from? What we're they used for, and when?" he said. Without that, they just become playground equipment."

The two cannons that most recently loomed over the intersection of Dundurn Street and York Boulevard, for example, have dates etched into the barrels of 1844 and 1846, respectively.

But those dates actually represent when the muzzles were rebored" to allow for larger cannon ball sizes. The cannons bear a cipher of King George III, suggesting they were originally cast sometime between 1760 and 1820.

You wouldn't learn that just by sitting on the big barrels - although Summers acknowledged that's among the most popular reasons to visit the big guns. For now, the best history is on Ward 1 councillor Maureen Wilson's website.

Summers said the city's heritage team plans to research safe mount options as well as appropriate homes for the cannons - so a return to Dundurn Park is possible, but not guaranteed. The city also recently pitched a new museum strategy that could influence where the cannons end up.

There is no guarantee cannon conservation will top next year's long list of heritage priorities, however, especially given the ongoing pandemic.

Natasha Venneri hopes to see the heritage guns back in (photo) shooting range soon.

Many Hamiltonians probably have a Dundurn cannon selfie. But probably fewer can claim Venneri's cherished bit of family lore - that her dad got his head stuck in a Dundurn gun muzzle as a child.

Gennaro Gatto moved to Hamilton from Italy with his family in the early 1950s and the four-year-old loved to walk with his grandparents from their Ray Street home to Dundurn Park and visit the cannons, she said.

(The 24-pounders have only guarded the military museum since the 1970s, but some of the largest cannons have apparently protected the Hamilton Harbour approaches since the First World War era.)

The story goes he wanted to look inside one of the cannons, his head got stuck and he started to cry," said Venneri. Apparently they called the fire department to come and help get him out."

These days, Hamilton cannon muzzles are plugged and generally child-safe. Venneri is betting plenty of families would love to see them return. The kids obviously love them - they're so sturdy," she said. And they're kind of part of my family history."

Matthew Van Dongen is a transportation and environment reporter at for The Spectator. mvandongen@thespec.com