A Diseased Tree In Missouri Had To Be Cut Down And A Civil-War Era Cannonball Was Found Inside

Sep 26, 2019 by apost team

Historical discoveries often happen at the oddest moments. That's the case for a newly discovered piece of Civil War history.

Jeff Eastham was called out to take down a diseased tree in Independence, Missouri. It was becoming a safety hazard to surrounding structures. Jeff owns and operates Jeff's Tree Service.

He said, "It was diseased. There were parts of it that were a danger to the houses behind it, and we had to take it down."

As he was taking the tree down, the wood split and out came a cannonball. Later in the process, he found some chains from the same era tangled in the tree limbs.

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Jeff thought it was pretty cool to find a tree with chains and cannonballs in it.

A bit of local history helped solve the mystery. Independence, Missouri, had two Civil War battles fought within its borders. The first of these battles actually happened right across the street from where the cannonball hit the tree.

According to the owner of the historic home where the tree once stood, it wasn't the first cannonball found on the property. They actually found another one in the house itself, back in 1980. It was lodged in the brick next to one of the windows.

That first cannonball now sits in a museum. The second one, found recently, is going to stay with the house. That's where it belongs. It was part of that tree for over 150 years, so it deserves to remain.

Let us know your thoughts. Also, let others see this historical find for themselves by passing the link on to friends and family.