2 cannons returned to National Guard after 117 years

Two cannons dating to Hawaii’s turbulent revolutionary days are back in the hands of the Hawaii National Guard 117 years after they were first delivered to the governmental militia.

In 1895, Company D of the National Guard of Hawaii received the two 12-pound Driggs-Schroe­der breach-loading cannons when the islands were the Republic of Hawaii, officials said.

They were stored for years at ‘Iolani Barracks before being turned over to the National Guard by the Hawaiian Historical Society, Guard officials said.

Lt. Col. Chuck Anthony, a Guard spokes­man, said the cannons originally were part of the National Guard inventory.

"They were considered pretty modern artillery pieces for 1895," Anthony said.

Anthony said the Guard is not sure whether the cannons were used or deployed.

"We just don’t know," he said. "There’s not a whole lot of information on them. We do know that they had to have been decommissioned sometime between the two wars — and when I mean the two wars, I’m talking about the Spanish-American War and World War I, so they were decommissioned sometime after 1900 but before 1914."

Anthony said he’s seen a photo from around 1895-1896, "and they look like they are two of a dozen or so that are in the photograph," but it’s not clear enough to see whether all the cannons are the same.

The Provisional Government of Hawaii created the National Guard after the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893.

The Guard was activated for use in the Leprosy War of 1893 and fought in the brief counterrevolution of 1895 in which royalists led by Robert Wilcox battled Republic of Hawaii forces in an attempt to return Queen Liliu­oka­lani to the throne.

Three years later the Territory of Hawaii came into being.

Anthony said ‘Iolani Barracks had been a National Guard armory for many years. When the Hawaii Air National Guard was established in 1946, unit members drilled at the barracks, and it was not unusual for Army National Guard soldiers to drill there as well, he said.

According to the Friends of ‘Iolani Palace, the barracks — originally located on what are now the grounds of the state Capitol — was completed in 1871 to house the Royal Guard.

Following the overthrow of the monarchy and disbanding of the Royal Guard, the barracks was used as a National Guard headquarters, a temporary shelter for refugees of the 1899 Chinatown fire, a service club, a government office building and for storage, the Friends of ‘Iolani Palace said on its website.

In 1965 the barracks was dismantled block by block and reconstructed at its current site on the palace grounds, the organization said.

Anthony remembers seeing the cannons and carriages at ‘Iolani Barracks decades ago. Over the years, and with the guns stored under a portico, the wood became cracked and the brass became tarnished, he said.

"I think they (the Hawaiian Historical Society) realized that they did not have the wherewithal, the resources, to keep them in the condition that they really should be in," and the National Guard was asked whether it wanted them, Anthony said.

Custody of the historic weapons was turned over to the Army Guard’s 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery, and the guns were moved to the Army Guard armory in Wahiawa.

Another old cannon now on Molokai was restored by the field artillery unit members years ago on nights, weekends and other time off.

"So a similar type of situation will occur for these (cannons)," Anthony said. "We’ll have guys that are used to taking care of modern-day artillery pieces volunteering their time to refurbish the cannons."