Was iT Colonel Norman Wiard? Norman Wiard, an inventor of some celebrity, made an ice
boat in 1856 and placed it on the river at Prairie du Chien, intending to run between that point and St, Paul, It was elaborately planned and elegantly finished, and resembled somewhat a palace car mounted on steel runners. It failed on account of the roughness of the ice, never making a single trip. It, however, proved somewhat remunerative as a show, and was for some time on exhibition within an inclosure at Prairie du Chien. The Wiard was designed by Canadian-American Norman Wiard. The guns were likely produced by O'Donnell Foundry in New York, using steel casting. Seen here on a standard reproduction carriage, the original guns had an advanced carriage that allowed the gun to elevate higher than normal field guns. The carriage also featured system of chains and shoes for each wheel to aid ascent and descent in broken terrain.
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