Phoenix Shot Tower facts for kids
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Shot Tower
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Phoenix Shot Tower
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 Location in Baltimore
Location in Maryland
Location in the United States
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| Location | Baltimore, Maryland |
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| Built | 1828 |
| NRHP reference No. | 69000373 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 1, 1969 |
| Designated NHL | November 11, 1971 |
The Phoenix Shot Tower, also known as the Old Baltimore Shot Tower, is a very tall, red brick building in Baltimore, Maryland. It stands about 234 feet (71 meters) high. This tower was built in less than six months in 1828. When it was finished, it was the tallest building in the entire United States!
The tower was first called the "Phoenix Shot Tower." Later, it was known as the "Merchants' Shot Tower" and sometimes the "Old Baltimore Shot Tower." It is the only shot tower left in Baltimore, even though there used to be four. Because of its history, it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1971. It also became a special local landmark for Baltimore City in 1975.
The tower is so famous that a nearby subway stop on the Baltimore Metro line is named "Shot Tower station." Even the original basketball team from Baltimore, the Baltimore Bullets, was named after the tower. This was because the tower made "shot," which are small lead balls used as bullets. The team that later became the Washington Wizards was also named after this tower.
How the Tower Was Built
The Phoenix Shot Tower was built by a person named Jacob Wolfe. The bricks used to build it came from a company in Baltimore called Burns and Russell. A very important person, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, helped start the building. He was a wealthy leader and the only person who signed the Declaration of Independence who was still alive at that time. He laid the first stone on July 4, 1828. The tower was finished in the same year. Charles Carroll's winter home was just one block south of the tower.
The tower is round and made of brick. At the bottom, its walls are very thick, about 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) wide. As you go higher, the walls get a little thinner in steps. By the top, they are about 21 inches (53 centimeters) thick. About 1.1 million bricks were used to build this tower! The builders did not use outside scaffolding. Instead, the masons (bricklayers) worked from the inside of the tower as they built it up.
The tower had two furnaces near the top, one on the 13th floor and another on the 14th floor. The very top of the tower looks like a castle, with a jagged edge called crenellation. At the bottom, there are heavy metal doors. The tower also has windows placed here and there along its side. These windows helped light up the staircase inside.
How Shot Was Made
The way lead shot was made in the tower is called the Watts Method. This method was invented by William Watts. It was a much better way to make shot than pouring lead into molds. Here's how it worked:
- Melted lead was taken to the very top of the tower.
- It was then poured through a special device that looked like a sieve (a strainer).
- As the lead drops fell, they became round because of air resistance.
- They then dropped into a large vat of cold water at the bottom of the tower. This made the lead harden into small, round "drop shot" for muskets.
After the shot hardened, it was dried and polished. Then, it was sorted into bags that weighed 25 pounds (11.3 kilograms) each. The tower could make 1,000,000 of these 25-pound bags every year! If needed, it could even make twice that amount. This made it one of the biggest shot producers in the country. The shot made here was mostly used for hunting small animals.
The tower made different sizes of shot. For "mold shot," it made sizes like No. 16, 37, 55, and others, including those for Colt's Army Navy Pistol and Buck Shot. For "drop shot," it made sizes from TTT down to 14.
The Phoenix Shot Tower stopped making shot in 1892. This was because a new method called the "wind tower method" became popular, making the Watts Method old-fashioned. The tower opened again for a short time in the early 1900s but then closed for good.
Tower History
The Phoenix Shot Tower was the tallest building in the United States until 1846. That's when Trinity Church, New York was built on Wall Street. It remained the tallest building in Baltimore until 1875. That year, the spire of the First Presbyterian Church was finished.
In 1882, a fire badly damaged the inside of the tower. People could see the flames from miles away, and some said the fire went 300 feet into the air! But the tower was quickly rebuilt and started making shot again. You can still see a change in the color of the bricks near the top of the tower from this fire. No one knows what caused the fire. Luckily, no one died in the tower during its time of production. There was one accident where two men were moving lead to the top, and a cable slipped. They fell but only had minor injuries.
The Merchants' Shot Tower Company owned the tower at first. This company closed in 1898.
In 1921, the Union Oil Company bought the tower for $14,500. They wanted to tear it down and build a gas station there. But the community strongly disagreed! By 1928, enough money was raised to buy the tower back. It was then given to the City of Baltimore as one of its first protected historic landmarks. The town paid between $17,000 and $22,000 to save the tower. The oil company still built a gas station, but they put it near the tower instead of in its place.
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In 1969, the tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It was owned by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore at that time. Then, in 1971, it was named a National Historic Landmark, and a bronze plaque was put on its brick wall. By 1976, the tower was fixed up and opened as a museum. It has needed more repairs over the years. In the early 1980s, the tower's tours and exhibits were managed along with the former Peale Museum. In 1982, the tower was repaired again. Later, in 1985, other historic places were added to a new system called the Baltimore City Life Museums. This system closed in 1997. In 2002, a new group called Carroll Museums Inc. was created to take care of both the Carroll Mansion and the Shot Tower.
The Tower Today
Recently, a group called Johnson, Mirmiran and Thompson (JMT) checked the Phoenix Shot Tower. They looked at how strong the brick walls were, as well as the wooden walkways, stairs, and lights. Their report said that the City of Baltimore now owns the building, and the National Park Service helps manage it.
After this check, the tower was restored and repaired again so people could visit it. A construction group called Plano Coudon Construction added a new electrical system and new lights on each level. They also fixed support beams and put in new metal railings that are attached to the landings. They added metal grates to cover open areas for safety. They also made it safer for visitors climbing from the 14th level to the roof. This included higher metal railings, wire mesh, and strong supports. Finally, they made the railings on the roof stronger and added lightning protection.
Today, you can visit the Phoenix Shot Tower on weekends during the summer months, from 10 AM to 12 PM.
