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.