BAY MINETTE, Ala. — A Civil War seacoast mortar has been hiding in plain sight for decades at North Baldwin Chamber of Commerce.

There is no security and no fence. A vandal’s sledgehammer wouldn’t make a dent. At 17,200 pounds, it is unlikely to be stolen.

The city of Bay Minette is considering donating the mortar to Baldwin County Bicentennial Park, where it will be given a facelift and become a centerpiece park attraction, according to park director Nick Warren.

NBCC executive director Margo Allen said the chamber’s board of directors was in support of the move.

“We are glad the city is receptive to the idea and we are awaiting a resolution to move it,” Allen said.

According to chamber documents, the 13-inch-bore mortar was cast in Fort, Penn., in 1861, and was deployed by Union troops in 1862. It is the largest piece of artillery used in the Civil War, and was used for seacoast fortifications or on mortar boats for siege operations. The maximum range was almost 2 miles and the explosive projectiles weighed about 280 pounds.

There are 27 in existence.

The mortar is believed to have been used at King’s Battery or Fort Huger, as it was known during the Civil War, according to a 1967 edition of The Baldwin Times. Inspiration for salvaging began with a history paper being written by Tom McMillan, of Stockton, then a graduate student at Auburn University, where he became interested in the history of of Blakeley.

McMillan spent three days searching for the relic which was on a sunken barge in a small canal off the Tensaw River. McMillan and others used metal detectors, but successfully found the mortar by using a pole in the 5-foot-deep waters.

The mortar was raised July 4, 1967, and temporarily placed in McMillan’s yard in Stockton, according to the newspaper account.

Warren said the mortar was involved in the siege of Blakeley and Spanish Fort in March 1865. The archivist said the relic may have been used at Vicksburg, Port Hudson and other sites before striking a mine and sinking.

It was placed at the Baldwin County Board of Education’s administrative office in Bay Minette before being move to the chamber.

“This is an extremely rare example of Civil War artillery,” Warren said. “But it needs lots of restoration. It’s been in brackish water over 100 years, and when it was retrieved, it looks like it was just painted. No one knew much about restoration processes then.”

If the city agrees to the move, the mortar will be sand blasted. A non-corrosive phosphate will be applied to remove the salt and other efforts will be taken to preserve it.

“If it goes to Bicentennial Park, I would love th create a mortar battery so park visitors can see how it was used,” Warren said.

“You notice it is facing north at the chamber. That’s a southern tradition for artillery, symbolically returning fire at the Union Army.”