Loki Loc: Georgia

On this day in 2002, divers recovered the turret of the ironclad Monitor, which sank off Cape Hatteras, NC on December 30, 1862. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the Monitor was famous for it's duel with the Confederate ironclad Virginia (nee' Merrimack ) earlier in 1862. The fight was a draw, but stopped the Virginia's reign of terror on wooden Union Navy ships.

Raylan Wolfe Loc: earth

Still waiting

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

One of the more memorable battles of the war, and one that altered the eventual make-up of navies around the world. As a youth, I was fascinated with the accounts of The Monitor Vs. The Merrimack. Thanks for the historical update, Loki :!:

GrampaG

Love history, especially Civil War, and especially Virginian. Thanks, Loki.

Loki Loc: Georgia

Good for you. Patience is a virtue, and you could use a couple of those.

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

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Excellent post, Loki! I always look forward to your "history lessons;" especially if they relate to the "War of the R*******n."

If I may, attached are a few pictures that relate to the Monitor and its raising.

The last pix shows the turrent with the two cannon and a few men inside. It's a real good representation of just how cramp it was inside those turrent. Imagine what it was like inside the turrent during a fire-fight. The heat and the noise was almost unbearable. Also, when the turrent was recovered, the partial remains of 2 men were recovered. Their skulls were examined by forensic pathologists and a reconstruction or their faces made. Pictures of the men, as well as other artifacts can be seen on the noaa website:
http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/pgallery/m_now.html

Thanks again, Loki!

PoppaGringo Loc: Muslim City, Mexifornia, B.R.

I am curious as to what he is awaiting.

Loki Loc: Georgia

I have included a link which gives specifics on the Dahlgren guns the Monitor mounted. If I am not mistaken, these monsters were muzzleloaders. I'm still trying to figure out how the hell they loaded them in such cramped quarters.
I am trying to locate the article which includes data on how many crewmen went deaf.

http://civilwarwiki.net/wiki/Monitor's_XI-inch_Dahlgren_Shell_Guns

Loki Loc: Georgia

He can't find an article, and is waiting for me to do the leg work.

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

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Here's what I know from my own CW readings, plus an article I located. Napped it helps. AB

Each gun (11" Dahlgrens) was manned by a crew of 8. Then, add an officer, for a total of 17 crewmen in the turrent. During the engagement, Monitor‍ '​s turret began to malfunction, making it extremely difficult to turn and stop at a given position, so the crew simply let the turret continuously turn and fired their guns "on the fly" as they bore on Virginia. Several times, Monitor received direct hits on the turret, causing some bolts to violently shear off and ricochet around inside. The deafening sound of the impact stunned some of the crew, causing nose and ear bleeding.

Monitor‍ '​s turret measured 20 ft (6.1 m) in diameter and 9 ft (2.7 m) high, constructed with 8 inches (20 cm) of armor (11 inches in front at the gun ports) rendering the overall vessel somewhat top heavy. Its rounded shape helped to deflect cannon shot. A pair of donkey engines rotated the turret through a set of gears; a full rotation was made in 22.5 seconds during testing on 9 February 1862. Fine control of the turret proved to be difficult as the engine would have to be placed in reverse if the turret overshot its mark or another full rotation could be made. The only way to see out of the turret was through the gun ports; when the guns were not in use, or withdrawn for reloading during battle, heavy iron port stoppers would swing down into place to close the gunports.

Monitor‍ '​s guns used the standard standard propellant charge of 15 pounds (6.8 kg) specified by the 1860 ordnance for targets "distant", "near", and "ordinary", established by the gun's designer Dahlgren himself. They could fire a 136-pound (61.7 kg) round shot or shell up to a range of 3,650 yards (3,340 m) at an elevation of +15°.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Monitor

Loki Loc: Georgia

Still a b***h to load. Having done some re-enacting, front-stuffer cannons are a pain in the ass to load outside, with all the room in the world. I can't imagine the headache trying to do it in cramped quarters. I believe it was around the 1870s or 1880s before Dahlgrens started converting to breechloader, although that's from memory and may be incorrect.

boatbob2

While I was stationed at Fort Benning Georgia,on Fridays they would fire blank 105 rounds on the main post,( breech loaders) we (3 of us) stuffed 2 rolls of toilet paper,in the muzzle (front of cannon) when the blank was fired,the TP disintigrated into a zillion pieces,very neat,after that,They always inspected the muzzle for more toilet paper.

BigJim

I believe I have read that during the battle with the Virginia/Merrimac the guns were loaded with half-charges because the guns were not fully trusted. Had they used full charges the Virginia would likely have been destroyed.

alabuck Loc: Tennessee

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I've read that, too. During the initial sea trials the guns loosened in their mounts after firing full charges. Hence the order for half-charges during battle. It was believed that had the 11" Dahlgrens been firing full charges that the solid shot would've perforated the Virginia's armor.

Originally, the Monitor was to carry 15" Dahlgrens. But they couldn't be made in the timeframe of construction. I have no doubt that had the Monitor had those 15" guns, that the battle would've been over in 30 minutes with the Virginia at the bottom of the bay.