columbiad

From Columbia (“the United States”). (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

columbiad (plural columbiads)

1. (military, historical) A form of cannon from the 19th century, mostly used for seacoast protection. It is a large-caliber, smoothbore, muzzle-loading cannon designed for launching shot or shells with heavy charges of powder, at both high and low angles of elevation.

• Rodman gun

• “columbiad”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.