Monitor

The beginning:

It was sailed during the time of the Civil War.
John Ericsson was an inventor and had designs the Navy wasn't sure about.
Because of rumors of weapons coming from the Confederate side, the Navy was forced to consider Ericsson's ideas, and offered $275,000.00 if the government received delivery in 100 days.
The Monitor slid into the water in 101 days
When built, the Monitor was 172 feet long and had 2 revolving gun turrets.
It had 40 original patents because the ideas behind it were so new.

The enemy

It was on March 8th, 1862 when the Merrimac, renamed the Virginia, came out of Norfolk, Virginia. The Merrimac was a confederate battleship.
It had new steel plating and destroyed a Federal Blockade port at Hampton Roads very quickly. If this continued the North would be in big trouble.

The battle

On March 6, 1862 The Monitor escorted the gunboats Carri tuck and Sachem to the area of the Union Blockade.
Virginia had just destroyed the Congress.
For 3 1/2 hours the Monitor and Virginia fought. The Monitor could move faster than the Virginia.
The Virginia when damaged retreated and the Monitor saved the Blockade!
Confederates destroyed the Virginia to keep the ship from the Union.
Monitor sank in a storm off North Carolina on December 31, 1862.

Now:

The Shipwreck is a national underwater sanctuary managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
There have been many expeditions to get artifacts from the shipwreck.
On March 9, 2007 the NOAA will open the USS Monitor Center. The new museum is being built to remember the time of the ironclads. It has 1000s of artifacts.