Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Search for Secrets of A Sunken Cannon - 54

Unknown who attended the Cannonsburg festivities in July 1848. Demas Hine was Cannonsburg's first physician (1845-1872). In the pact of officials in 1846 was an individual that grew very fond of the Cannonsburg cannon and used his knowledge and skill of firing it and firing artillery in the Civil War. He remains a secret until later on, but James Thomas, the fifth settler in the township would had a vested interest in what happened to the cannon. Jame's secret wasn't discovered until Bob passed away in the 21st century by an accident of my own creation.

I had violated a creed of treasure hunting. Never go treasure, err, cannon hunting alone or without GPS. An accident happened when I didn't tell family and friends where I'm going and what time I'll return. I wasn't lost, but the situation might have resulted in being critically injured had the object fallen on me. It was so unexpected where nobody would have rescued me had I been unconcious and frozen to death before emergency help arrived.

Wandering around in old cemeteries is what I do studying tombstone inscriptions, but in a snowstorm is not advisable. I was acting upon a dream. Destiny had called in my dream, but I acted impulsively and prematurely without regard to others. I couldn't escape the magnetic dream. "Have you ever acted promptly to a dream sequence? The spirits said "Do it this morning!" It was if the spirits of Bob Alcumbrack, Walter Tompsett and deceased friends were calling me to discover the ultimate missing secret. I was summoned to a particular spot and I acted upon the strange feelings.

I tripped on a broken mystery stone buried beneath icy pellets and to break my fall between larger stones I grabbed a large monument thinking it was sturdy and it wasn't. It had been broken previously by Mother Nature or vandals. Laying on the ground I saw the tombstone shift, twist and expose something and I feared I'd be squashed by falling granite, but it was from this position I realized what we all missed in our search for secrets of a sunken cannon. Sometimes it pays to search outside the box, that's people and objects outside the core of those involved in the accidental cannon explosion that led to the death of Walter Tompsett. We missed it.

My latest discovery was in 2007 several years after the death of Bob Alcumbrack, Allen Janose and Harold, Maggie and Matt McCarthy. You've all heard that "There is a time for everything on Sun," but this isn't the time or place to reveal my observation lying in a twisted heap between large stones. I didn't know my body could twist like this and not get hurt. The stone didn't fall, but it did change my attitude about walking alone. Obey the treasure hunter creed. The rest of my discovery will return later, but for now let's rejoin what led to the cannon's arrival in Cannonsburg.

During the first week of April 1846, the Michigan legislature erroneously named the township Churchtown, which was later changed to Cannon Township. The first officials who sought the name "Cannon" designation resigned in mass protest thus prompting the legislature to resolve the disagreement by changing the name to Cannon between April 19, 1847 and Dec. 13, 1847. J. Hartwell and Cornelius Wample all resigned under the name Churchtown. All acting township officials were arguing over the previous name change. During 1847 officials played official roulette. Hugh E. McKee was appointed to fill Maj. Worden's seat vacated Dec. 13, 1847 under name of Cannon. Mr. S. Haskins of Cannonsburg was appointed to fill H. H. Worden's seat vacated April 23, 1847, but Haskins resigned August 1847 and B.B. Worden appointed to fill John Hartwell's April 1847 resignation, but Worden resigned in Sept. 1847 under Cannon. Watson resigned April 1847 and H. Worden April, 23, 1847 under the township names of Churchtown or Cannon.

All these acting officials and appointees resigned under the name Churchtown, but re-elected under the name Cannon Township in spring 1848. The legistlature had passed "Cannon" and during the winter of 1847-48 made the name change. Time to stop lots of lightning. Spring 2010 thunderstorms have arrived. See ya' tomorrow for Le Grand Cannon's shock when he opens his letter from his attorney John Ball to find the village and township bear his name.

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