The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-05-09
MEDALS INADE
OF AIR'IlLOR PLATE
Souvenirs Of the Famous Confede-.
rate Ram.
sHEATHING OF The VIRGINIA !"
Richmond Gentlemen Locate an In
tercstins aud Valuable Relic
of the First Iron
~ Clad.
=sHEATHING OF THE VIRGINIA

It is the plan of several Richmond sen.
tlemen to put on the market souvenirs u
the famous ram Virginia.
An interesting relic of the civil war
came to light recently in me
finding of several tons OF the otislfiii
armor-plate of the Confederate ram
Virginia, or Merrimac, as she was gener-5
ally called. 1t has been lying on beile
Island, the property of the Old DOMINION
Iron and Nail Works, who purchased II
ron the raising Of the Virginia by the
United States Cos eminent, shortly AFTER
the war
Recently it has been purchased by
several Richmond gentlemen, VINO are 10
have it n ade into souvenirs Tor dislfl-
button. a part of the iron is now being
rolled into sheets, from which VII! be
stamped medals, to be used as pocket
pieces or watch charms. These, 1t is
hoped will be ready for Carnival week.
and will be an interesting Keepsake, pom
to remember that occasion and 70 Keep
in the mind the ingenuity OF the Soulh'
which designed and built the frst shti1S
iron-clad.
HEAVY BARS
The armor-plate is in bars, most OF
them eight inches wide and two inches
thick, which We're bolted directly on to
oak timbers. Some of the pieces pre-
served have deep impressions made by
solid shot. The Merrimac, although not
the first eXperin ents in armor-protected
vessels was the first vessel to show the
advantages of such protection IN an
actual naval engagement. Both the
French and English had several pro-
tected ships before 1862, but it remained
for the Merr;mac to show its worth and
it was the Merrilnac, butt by southern
skill, which started the movement end-
ing in revoiutionZng modern naval
ct
the Confederate Museum. III this city.
STORY OF THE VIRGINIA.
She was built near Norfolk in 1851.
from the hull of the United States frigate
Merrimac, which was fired and sunk there.
April, 1861 The armor-plate was rolled
by the TIedeear Iron Company. OF Rich
mond, Va. She carried eight S-pound
rif1ed guns, besides two guns capable
of throwing a 120-pound shell. or 100
p1und solid shot On the Sth of March,
1852. without practically any warning,
she steamed out of Elizabeth river into
Hampton Roads, where she sank in a
short time the United States frigate
Cumberland, and made the frisate Con-
Gress surrender. their shot, meanwhile.
falling harmlessy off her sides. The
Federal loss was 244 killed drowned and
wounded; Confederates', Il. On the fol-
loving day she totally disabled the
frigate Minnesota. making her run
aground t was then that the memora-
Bile encounter with the Monitor took
place. 1t was practically a drawn bat
tie. the Virginia withdrawing into Eliza
beth river at nightfall. Every one who
can remember that time recalls the
anxiety and terror of the North when
the news of this impregnable floating
fortress sped over the}land. Every one
there expected her to. proceed north and
destroy all cities on the coast.
During the next month the Virginia
reappeared in Hampton Roads and
destroyed three unguarled Federal trans
ports But the threa tened seizure of
Norfolk by the Federals in May caused
her to be blown up on May II. 1862. SO
that she could not fall into the hands of
the enemy. She was raised by the United
States Government shortly after the close
of the war, and her iron sold as junk