USSMonitor’s turret was armed with two XI-inch Dahlgren guns resting on specially designed gun carriages. These carriages are composite artifacts consisting of about 300 individual parts made of a variety of materials including: wood, copper alloy, wrought and cast iron. The carriages are each: 43-1/2” wide x 76” deep x 30” high. Two iron brackets with wooden cores create the sides. The forward and aft ends consist of an iron plate secured to the sides with angled iron, screws and rivets. The carriages were designed to roll back and forth on iron rails attached to the floor of the turret. A large brass wheel tightened or loosened the braking assembly.
这些枪支马车使USS成为可能Monitor旋转的炮塔是世界上第一艘放在船上的炮塔，在船上开火了将近360度，除非飞行员遭到枪击。此外，爱立信还引入了使用摩擦制动机制来控制达尔格伦枪的后坐力，因为炮塔内部有狭窄的空间。枪支长13英尺，炮塔的内径为20英尺，使后坐力成为物理上有趣的运动。没有制动机制，每次射击后，枪支都会撞到炮塔的后部。在水手上写道，在最初的测试射击期间，刹车组件被意外松动而不是收紧。当枪发射时，每枪都撞到了炮塔的后壁，留下了透明的凹痕。在沉船上找到这些凹痕增加了考古证据来支持该帐户。这样的故事提供了更完整的图片Monitor的历史。
由于它们在海底有140年的退化，这两种马车都非常脆弱。当炮塔在下沉过程中倒挂时，他们被发现在枪支顶部搁在枪的顶部。这使他们很难从炮塔中移走进行治疗。马车的综合性质增加了它们的脆弱性，并使他们的保护变得复杂。没有治疗可以同时保存铜合金，铁和木材；因此，必须尽可能拆卸马车进行治疗。如果不损害工件的完整性，则无法进行拆卸时，保护者必须研究一次尝试一次保存几种材料。
To date, one carriage has been completely dissembled and the individual pieces are undergoing their own conservation treatments. The second carriage has only been partially disassembled and is visible to visitors in its treatment tank from our special viewing platform.
Monitor’srotating gun turret was an important technological advance in naval architecture and warfare. Its cylindrical frame was constructed of eight layers of 1″ thick wrought iron plates strong enough to withstand enemy fire. The turret rotated to aim the two XI” Dahlgren shell guns and then rotated away after firing to protect the sailors inside from return fire. When theMonitorsank, the vessel flipped over and the turret fell upside down onto the seabed. A number of important artifacts were excavated from this part of the ship, including the remains of two sailors. Visitors can see the turret in the Batten Conservation Laboratory Complex as it undergoes treatment in a large tank of water to prevent further corrosion.
Monitor’scoal-fired steam engine was another of engineer John Ericsson’s improved designs. He oriented the engine so that the piston oscillated horizontally instead of vertically, greatly reducing the height of the engine compartment, allowing it to stay below the waterline. The components of the engine are constructed of various material types: iron, brass, nickel alloys, glass, rubber, grease, and coatings. Conservators will disassemble the engine so that each component can be conserved without negative effects on other components. Upon conclusion of the treatment, the engine will be reassembled and placed on display in the Large Artifact Gallery ofIronclad Revolution.
冷凝器是Monitor’ssteam engine propulsion assembly. After steam moved the engine piston that turned the propeller, it passed through the condenser where it expanded into cooler, lower pressure gas that was discharged from the engine room. The condenser is another example of a large, complex artifact with many composite parts.
TheMonitorwas armed with two XI-Inch Dahlgren shell guns that were located inside the revolving gun turret. The cast iron guns are over thirteen feet long with a bore diameter of eleven inches. Each gun weighs approximately eight tons. Rear Admiral John A. Dahlgren designed the guns, numbers 27 and 28, which were manufactured at Robert P. Parrott’s West Point Foundry in Cold Springs, NY in 1859. After the battle with the C.S.S.弗吉尼亚, one was engraved “Monitor&Merrimac– Worden” to commemorate the battle and captain of theMonitor. The other gun was engraved “Monitor&Merrimac– Ericsson” to honor the man who designed the revolutionary warship. Visitors can see these massive guns undergoing electrolytic reduction and desalination in the Batten Conservation Laboratory Complex.
沃辛顿单纯泵或“驴泵”是勤奋的通用泵。它们被用来将水进出锅炉，作为舱底泵和必不可少的消防泵。水手博物馆的保护者已经拆开了其中一根泵，以促进泵的不同组件材料（例如橡胶，铁，黄铜，纺织品和铅）更容易处理。治疗完成后，将重新组装泵并展示。每个泵的主要铁摇篮包含一个铸件，上面写着“H. R. Worthington New York, Patented April 3, 1849.“
The packing seal, or “stuffing box”, is an assembly of cast iron, wrought iron, and organic packing material that prevented water from entering the ship where the propeller shaft passed through the hull. The packing seal kept out leaks and still allowed the shaft to turn unimpeded. Sailors tightened two cast iron sleeves to compress a layer of plant fibers made waterproof with resins. At some point before excavation, the outer cast iron gland fractured, revealing an informative cross section the materials used in this part. The damage likely occurred during the wrecking process when a large section of the propeller shaft, near the packing seal, bent under the force of the sinking vessel.
Monitor’sfour-blade, cast iron screw propeller is currently on display in the Large Artifact Gallery of the USSMonitorCenter. The nine-foot diameter propeller was protected from enemy shot because it was located safely forward of the aft-most portion of the hull. The screw propeller was better protected than exposed paddlewheels on other ships at the time. This made it extremely difficult to crippleMonitor’spropulsion system.
Though it may not look like it,Monitor’s锚是用锻铁制成的。当锻铁伪像这样，这种腐蚀时，表面通常看起来像腐烂的木头。锚的核心仍然由固体，闪亮的铁组成，尽管外观外观。该锚在1980年代从残骸现场发现了锚，是第一个经过处理的大型工件。
在发掘期间Monitor’srevolving gun turret in 2002, archaeologists and conservators discovered twenty-four pieces of silverware. Some pieces of silverware were engraved with the names or initials of crewmembers or officers who served aboard theMonitor. A few pieces silverware carry the names of sailors who perished the night of the sinking, and these artifact offer a personal and emotional connection to the past.
On the night of December 31, 1862, while en route to the Carolinas, theMonitor在北卡罗来纳州哈特拉斯角海岸的大海沉没。目击者报告说，大约在凌晨1:30，红色的遇险信号灯笼在炮塔上燃烧，船本身不再可见。该灯笼于1977年恢复，发现躺在USS附近的沙滩上Monitor’sturret. This lantern was the last visible sign of theMonitorbefore she sank and the very first artifact recovered from the wreck, signaling a rebirth of this mighty Civil War icon.
发动机的倒车轮是一个带有单个手柄和六个弯曲辐条的大黄铜轮。工程师通过转动车轮改变了发动机中阀的方向，从而改变了蒸汽的方向撞击活塞，并将船的方向从向前变为反向。反向轮的恢复显示了爱立信的发动机设计的修改；他最初指定了手动曲柄。
The engine register is a brass gauge and was mounted to the ship’s engine. The engine register consists of a round metal container which houses six numbered brass wheels that would rotate as the propeller shaft turned. The numbered wheels reflected the number of revolutions made by the engine, (74,9088), during the vessel’s service. The function of this artifact was similar to an odometer in modern automobiles. The engine register faceplate reads “Monitor, Engine Register, 1862″ and was the first artifact recovered from the wreck with the vessel’s name on it. There is a small hole torn in the face of the register. This damage was likely caused by impact during the sinking.
Monitor’sengine room clock is built primarily of brass components. The clock also had a silvered face and glass plate, though the glass no longer remains intact. During treatment, a conservator discovered a maker’s mark on the surface of an interior component of the clock’s gear box. The mark, “V. GIROUD”, stands for Victor Giroud, a well-known clock maker in New York at the time ofMonitor’sconstruction.
Personal effects related to the men that served aboardMonitoroffer a glimpse of life on an ironclad during the Civil War. Archaeologists excavated a rubber comb from sediment insideMonitor’sgun turret. The comb is a standard issue Navy comb and is made of black hard rubber with longer, wider teeth on one end and shorter thinner teeth on the other. The comb is inscribed with, “U.S. NAVY, IR. COMB Co. GOODYEARS PATENT MAY 6 1851” and is in near perfect condition. It looks quite similar to plastic combs available in modern pharmacies.
Several naval jacket buttons have also been found during excavation. The large, round black buttons are made of India rubber. Each button has four small holes for attachment. The front has a circular edging around it with printing and three five-point stars above an anchor. The buttons are inscribed, “U.S.N. NOVELTY RUBBER Co / GOODYEAR’S PATENT / 1851 / NEW YORK”.
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