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Chances are that during your travels around town, you may have noticed the black cannon shell that sits on the sidewalk in front of City Hall. No signs explain anything about it as it just sits there unassumingly day in and day out. That was certainly more than enough to pique the interest of Brown Library historian, Stephen Brown. “My first thought was how on earth did it get here and why,” said Farrell.

“I began looking through our digital newspaper archives and learned that the ten-inch cannon shell was from the USS Maine, which sank after a mysterious explosion in 1898 in Havana Harbor, resulting in the start of the Spanish American War. In 1913, then-congressman John H. Small of Washington, secured the shell as it and other artifacts from the ship were being used as monuments across the country. The 492-pound shell was placed on a pedestal at the northeast corner of 2nd and Market Streets by what was then the federal courthouse. It was moved at some point in time to its current location. However, we still don’t know what happened to the original pedestal,” he explained.

Farrell said Washington had several veterans who served during the Spanish American War, one of whom was Lt. Samuel Masters Blount. He was responsible for obtaining another artifact from the ship. “He secured a cleat, the device used to hold the lines from the boat for mooring and docking,” said Farrell “For many years it was displayed in the front window of Dr. James Gallagher’s drug store on Main Street. It is pretty neat and extremely rare that multiple monuments from the USS Maine were located in the same small eastern North Carolina town.”

Farrell said the shell serves as a standing testament to those men and women from Washington who served in the Spanish American War, one of which he said is often overlooked and forgotten. “I consider it a national treasure,” said Farrell. “Over 200 sailors lost their lives on the USS Maine. The main mast from the ship has been erected as a monument in Arlington National Cemetery. We hold a piece of that history right here in Washington and it is important to recognize it and celebrate it. Something with this much prestige needs to be remembered as it represents a piece of who we are and where we are today.”