Origins of the Merrimack
The Merrimack was not originally a Confederate Ship. It was originally a Union frigate 4,636 ton, forty-gun steam frigate built at the Boston Navy Yard in 1855. In 1860, it was sent to the Norfolk Navy Yard for engine repairs. The Norfolk Navy Yard became a target for the Confederate forces, and was eventually overtaken. The commanders of the yard had a responsibility to prevent the Merrimack from getting into the hands of the Confederates. Since they were unable to get the Merrimack out in time, they set fire to and sunk it in the yard.
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The confederate's new ship
The Union navy had wooden steam frigates guarding the entrances to harbors up and down the Atlantic coast. With these ships, the Union navy had a blockade at Chesapeake bay, also known as Hampton Roads. This blockade prevented Confederate ships, from reaching Richmond Virginia, the capital of the Confederate. The Confederate navy knew that they could not outnumber the Union ships, so they looked to the new technology of iron armored ships.
"If to cope with them upon the sea we follow their example and build wooden ships, we shall have to construct several one at a time; for one or two ships would fall easy prey to her comparatively numerous steam frigates. But inequality of numbers maybe compensated by invulnerability; and thus not only does economy but naval success dictate the wisdom and expediency of fighting with iron against wood, without regard to the cost. " Stephen R. Mallory - Secretary of Confederate Navy.
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Stephen Mallory recognized the responsibility the Confederate navy had to create a more advanced naval warship. He decided it was too time consuming and expensive to purchase an "iron-armored" ship from Europe or to build one from scratch. They decided to use the remains of the sunken USS Merrimack to build their own ironclad warship.
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Birth of the css Virginia
The Merrimack was moved into dry dock at the Norfolk Navy Yard. There they added 4 inches of thick iron plating around a wooden cast. The ship then had a high powered steam boiler and metal propeller mounted on the ship. They mounted 4 rifles, six smoothbore cannons and two high powered howitzers. These weapons and armor all came together to form the ultimate fighting machine.