The Washington times., 1907-04-14
MerrimaC
To Meet
Monitor

One of the most sensational features
planned for the jamestown Exposition
is a vivid reproduction Of the history
making battle between the iron-clad
ram. the Merrimac. and the Monitor,
which was fought in Hampton roads
March 8. 1862.
This great naval encounter of the
civil war TevolutiOliZed naval warfare,
and when the sham battle is fought this
summer in the same waters as the
great indecislVe struggle, IL viii be IN
sight of the great modern iron-clads
which have been constructed as result
of this stUpendOus conflict
The History Making Conflict.
The fight which will be reproduced
on a colossal and imposing scale &C
CURED about as follows:
The Merrimac was originally a United
States frigate and was SUM together
with other vessels when the Federal
Government abandoned the NorIolK
navy yard in 1861. The ConfederaJes
succeeded in raising the sunken frigate
at great expense and recnrlslehtu IL the
Virginia, when the vessel began It's MS
tOriC career. Those in charge OF fals-
ing the frigdte conceived the unique idea
of protecting its sides with steel rails
taken from the railroad line which AaQ
been wrecked by Federal troops
After being thus armored, the VIZ
ginia better known as the MerTlmdc.
began its eveutfm career by destroying
the Federal ships, the Congress ana
the Cumberland in battle on newport
News on March s. 1862 The following
day the Merrimac steamed out expect
ing to destroy the remaining vessels or
the Federal fleet Instead Of this she
met her Waterloo. for during the night
there had steamed into Hampton roads
a queer looking craft, appearing only
one or two feet above the water line.
and surmOuHted by small turret.
Mysterious Craft the Monitor.
This was the epoch-makinE Monitor,
the product of the brain Of John Erics-
son.
Then began a contest lasting four
hours, which resulted In he recOnstruc-
ton of the naVieS OF the world. Inc
Merrimac time and again endeaVored
TO ram the Monitor but ler engines
were not strong enough to develop SUI
fiCient momentum TO cripple the Erlcs-
son craft, which was under the com
mand of Lieut.. John /. Worden- on
the other hand, the guns or Ine Aloni-
Tor succeeded in Gripping the Merrlmac
in spite Of her armOr of steel ralls-
The Merrimac was finally forced 10
withdraw and was destroyed Dy lae
C0nfederates when they evacuated the
Norfolk navy yard May II. 1S62, 10 pre-
vent her falling into the hands or the
NortheTners.
In the MGQlIOT- AtIIllidt tbililitt Nilft =
were no casualties. although several
men on both sides were seriously in
lured in spite OF the fact that both yes
sells were armor clad
On May Is. 1852, in company with the
GaIena, the Naugatuck, the Port Royal
and the AroOstoOk. the Monitor par
tcipated in an unsuccessful attempt to
capture Richmond. On December 81,
1852 while en- route 20 Beaufort, n C.
the Monitor sank in a WindstOrm, four
officers and seventeen men being
drowned.
1t was the battle in Hampton roads
that made the Monitor and the Mcrrl-
mac famous. 1t was that battle which
made the navy of the United States and
the navies of the world iron clad.
II is this conflict which viii be shown
to the present generation all its start
ling realism. The movements of the yes
sells. the firing of the big guns. the at
tempts-au these things viii be repro
duced only after consultation with men
who saw the original battle. The spec
tacle will be a memorable event in the
lives or all those who witness this rep
lfca of one of the greatest sea fights in
the history of the entire world.