What cannons did the Civil War use?
There were dozens of types, from small Coehorn mortars to huge Columbiads. They fired shells weighing from 6 to 600 (or more) pounds. Some were made of brass while most were iron. Some were smoothbore while some were rifled. Some fired solid iron balls and some fired specially shaped exploding projectiles. The war was a great proving ground and an ordnance man’s dream. They all were muzzle loaders and fired with black powder.
