Douglas cannon

[2] During the middle of the nineteenth century at Wesleyan, cannons were fired to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday.

Prior to its acquisition by the college, the campus was occupied by Captain Partridge's American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy.

In order to celebrate George Washington's birthday, one of these was dug up, cleaned, and fired in the early morning hours by some freshman students.

[4] Apparently, members of the freshman class would attempt to locate one or more cannon and acquire some powder and ammunition, often buying or renting them from nearby Meriden, Portland, or New Britain.

On the 20th of February, a group of juniors attempted to sneak the cannon out, working for the sophomores and claiming to be freshmen.

They managed to take possession of the ammunition, but as they were trying to persuade the farmer to leave the cannon when they were recognized as juniors and chased off.

If sighted on the way to firing position, mobs of sophomores would swarm the cannon team and attempt to physically overwhelm them.

The carriage had been removed (the wheels now serve as chandeliers in a university building) and the cannon filled with lead and mounted to a stone pedestal with a bronze plaque.

The Douglas CannonBorn in Obscurity · Reared in StrifeTempered by Travel · Never DiscouragedHome at Last[6] In March, 1957, the modern tradition of stealing the cannon began.

It was removed the night of March 12, hidden in Middletown, taken to New York and Iowa, and returned by masked figures in June 1958 during a reunion luncheon.

In April, the Dean of students, Mark Barlow, drove to New York, explained the situation to the diplomats, and recovered the cannon.

In May 1965, the cannon was stolen again, appearing in 1966 on campus and in 1967 at the office of the managing editor of Life Magazine in New York, and was returned to the university in time for that year's graduation.

[8] The pattern of repeated thefts and brief appearances on campus, as well as the receipt of letters and postcards from the cannon, continued from the 1970s until the present time (2007).

A member of the class wrote an open letter to the cannon in the Argus asking that it return for the reunion, and upon appearing it was serenaded by the alumni.

In 1989, it was reportedly mounted to a theft-proof base presented by an alum who was a retired CIA official, and stolen again 29 days later.

In 2000, photos were received depicting the cannon in St Louis, Kansas, and at Las Vegas slot machines.

The Douglas cannon is not to be confused with an American Air Defense Artillery Army Officer of the same name.