The lobby to the north entrance of the State House is home to two famous Civil War cannons, each with its own unique history.

The Gettysburg Gun was struck by three Confederate shells during Pickett's Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863. Two members of Battery B First Regiment Rhode Island Light Artillery were getting ready to load the cannon when a Confederate shell hit the muzzle, instantly killing officer William Jones. The second officer, Alfred G. Gardner, was struck in the left shoulder and died minutes later, shouting, "Glory to God! I am happy! Hallelujah!"

Officers tried to load the gun, hitting the 12-pound iron ball with the side of an axe, but the muzzle was too damaged and the heat of the gun molded the ball in place. Even now, visitors can see the charge still lodged in the cannon.

After the war, the Gettysburg Gun was displayed in Washington D.C. It came home to Rhode Island in 1874, and has been inside the State House since 1903. For 99 years, the gun remained loaded with its charge of gunpowder, until the potential danger was noted and the powder was removed in 1962.

The lobby also houses another Civil War cannon, this one used in the Battle of Bull Run. On each side of the lobby, in display cases behind the guns, there are Rhode Island regimental flags used during the Civil War and the Spanish-American War.