A collection of Revolutionary War cannons, hidden for nearly 240 years beneath the waters of the Savannah River, is now on public display in Georgia’s oldest city. The artifacts are being showcased as the United States prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary.The Savannah History Museum recently opened its new exhibit, Loyalists & Liberty: Savannah in the American Revolution, which prominently features 19 cannons recovered from the river. Experts consider this find the largest single cache of 18th-century artillery ever retrieved from one Revolutionary War naval incident.

The cannons were discovered in 2021 during routine dredging by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which was working to deepen the shipping channel for larger vessels. Heavily covered in oyster shells and marine buildup after centuries underwater, the pieces also yielded smaller artifacts, with several cannons still containing cannonballs and original gunpowder charges.

Most of the artillery was sent to a conservation lab at Texas A&M University for extensive restoration. Conservators spent years using a specialized electrolysis process to remove salt from the iron, then stabilized and protected the metal for long-term exhibition. Seventeen cannons received full restoration, while two were intentionally left in their recovered condition so visitors can see the dramatic contrast.All 19 cannons are now permanently displayed at the museum. Historians believe they originated from British ships that were intentionally sunk in 1779 to block the narrowest part of the Savannah River. The British created this underwater barrier to stop French naval forces from advancing upriver and aiding American efforts to recapture Savannah, which was then under British control.The scuttled ships went down just weeks before the Battle of Savannah—one of the deadliest clashes of the Revolutionary War, with more than 800 casualties in under an hour. The museum itself stands on ground closely connected to that historic battlefield.Beyond the military hardware, the exhibit highlights a wider range of voices from the era. It explores the experiences of Indigenous people, enslaved and free Black residents, women, children, and other often-overlooked groups, using the cannons as a central element to present a more complete and inclusive picture of Savannah’s role in the fight for American independence.