On February 28, 1844, U.S. Secretary of State Abel Upshur and Navy secretary Thomas Gilmer were killed by this:
Cholera
Sinking of the USS Atik
A bombing in the Capitol
Mexican assassins
Explosion of the shipboard cannon "Peacemaker?
Explosion of the shipboard cannon "Peacemaker.?
On February 28, 1844, U.S. Secretary of State Abel Upshur and Navy secretary Thomas Gilmer were killed when, aboard the new warship USS Princeton, the shipboard cannon called the ?Peacemaker? exploded during a demonstration firing. Also aboard the ship was President John Tyler, additional cabinet members and hundreds of distinguished guests. The cannon weighed 27,000 pounds, had a 15-foot-long barrel and could hurl a 225-pound ball six miles.
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