August 5, 2002

On this day in history in 2002 the gun turret of the USS Monitor was recovered by divers.

A Civl War Relic

The USS Monitor was an ironclad naval warship during the Civil War, fighting on the side of the Union. She was completed in 1862 and was the first ship of its kind commissioned by the navy. It was designed by a Swedish engineer, John Ericsson. It was unique in its unusually low profile, which rose only 18 inches from the water. It was equally renowned for its revolving turret, which was quickly duplicated on other armored warships for the navy for the next several decades.

The USS Monitor

She dueled the USS Merrimack in one of the most famous naval battles on March 6, 1862. Since both ships were iron the cannon balls that were shot from one ship were simply deflected off the other. Although the battle ended in a standstill, the Monitor helped end a short reign of terror the Confederates had managed to bring to the more renowned Union navy.

Water Aboard

Despite her fighting during the war the Monitor didn't actually sink because of a battle, but rather from leaks that occurred when the caulking around the gun turret loosened. After her famous duel she was sent to North Carolina where she struggled in the open sea. The USS Rhode Island had to pull her through the waters but by then the caulking had begun to loosen and she was taking on water. As more waves hit the ship, more seams opened, and the Monitor was in serious trouble by the morning of December 30, 1862. Most of the crew abandoned ship but 16 crew members, who couldn't be rescued, went down with the ship when she sank after her pumps stopped working.

Pulling Up the Ship

Raising the gun turret from the Atlantic Ocean

In 2002 the warship's turret was raised from the Atlantic floor where it had rested for the previous 140 years. Divers had worked the previous six weeks to bring it to the surface.

The turret was brought to the Mariners' Museum in Virginia where it began being preserved and conserved. As of 2016, it was still undergoing preservation efforts, which can sometimes take upwards of twenty years to complete.