Story thread · 2 reports / 2 sources

Man Used Live Civil War Explosive as Paperweight for Years

thedailybeast.com · 7dShare

What Steve Martin thought was a harmless paperweight piece sitting on his office desk for years turned out to be a live Civil War-era explosive. The Atascosa County, Texas, native had kept the 20-pound iron object in his office after his son, Jarrett, found it while fishing along the Guadalupe River several years ago. Martin believed it was nothing more than an old relic until a truck driver with military training visited his office. The driver took one look at the object and warned Martin it “could really be live ordnance.” Read more at The Daily Beast.

First report: A Man Used This Civil War Artifact as a Paperweight on His Desk. The Bomb Squad Told Him It Was Actually a Live Explosive — smithsonianmag.com, 8d