Potentially Live Civil War Shell Found In Va. Home

PETERSBURG, Va. (AP) - National Park Rangers say they found a potentially live Civil War-era artillery shell in Petersburg, Va., and called in police to check it out.

The shell was found Thursday at a home after rangers with a warrant searched it during a criminal investigation.

The Petersburg Progress-Index reports that local police blocked off streets near the home while state police retrieved the shell.

Officials could not say whether the shell was live.

Civil War-vintage shells are often recovered in Virginia. Three years ago, a relic hunter was killed when a shell exploded in the driveway of his Chester home.