CAMPBELLTON, Texas – A Civil War-era explosive was safely removed from an Atascosa County property Monday after the homeowner discovered the decades-old relic was still live.
Deputies were called just before 8 a.m. to the 21000 block of FM 791 after the homeowner reported he had what he believed was a Civil War-era artillery round.
According to the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office, the man told deputies he had owned the item for years. He thought it was a harmless replica until a friend with military experience suspected it was still an active explosive.
Out of an abundance of caution, the sheriff’s office requested assistance from an explosive disposal team from Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.
The explosives team determined the device was a live Parrott artillery shell, a type of ammunition used during the Civil War. The shell was safely transported to an explosives range at Camp Bullis, where it was detonated.