Encyclopedia · People, inventors, and ordnance officers

George Bomford

George Bomford (1782-1848) was a United States ordnance officer best known for designing the columbiad, the heavy American seacoast gun, and for his long service in the Ordnance Department.

Also known as: Colonel George Bomford.

Born1782
Died1848
Known forDesigning the columbiad
ServiceLong career in the United States Ordnance Department

Father of the columbiad

George Bomford was an early United States ordnance officer whose name is attached to the columbiad, the heavy American seacoast gun able to throw shot or shell at high or low angle. His design gave the coastal defenses a distinctive and powerful weapon early in the century.

Bomford served long in the Ordnance Department, helping shape the young nation's system of heavy ordnance and the arsenals that produced it.

On this site

Sources & further reading

← Back to the Encyclopedia