Civil War canister (shotgun, range, load, rounds)

[TrapperL]

Was surfing and ran across canister used in the Civil War. I've never really heard of it before but it's a "round" used in cannon before and during the Civil War. We still use a form of it today. A common 12lb cannon would fire a 12.25 lbs round that was filled with shot. I had heard of shot being used but never as a single round. The standard size, by what I read, for the shot made the balls at 1.46 to 1.49 inches round and weighing in at 3010 grains. Velocity was 1700'ps. Talk about being able to clear a spot on the battle field! Some of the shot for the heavier cannons was as large as 2.25" and made of pure iron. The canister would come apart as it left the muzzle and the shot spread out in a cone. That's one hellva shotgun. No wonder so many died in the Civil War. It's a lot easier to understand limbs being blown off now.
Cannon bore, shot, and shell diameters for smoothbore guns

Civil War Canister Shot - YouTube

[Dd714]

Yes, a dealy anti-infantry weapon in close artillery combat, not long distance. They would usually shift from solid or shell shot to cannistor rounds at a range of a couple hundred yards. At really close range it would tear a body to unrecognizable bits.
A large shotgun is essentially what it was, in some situations an artillery would load doable cannister. In the napoloenic era it was known as grapeshot. Also used in ship to ship combat in close engagements to clear enemy decks.