DeSotoSky
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- Mar 21, 2011
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Hello and welcome to the Sunday Picture Show. Share your Buck knives with others by posting pictures of them here. New or old, plain or custom, user or safe queen, one or a collection, we love to see them all. This weekly tradition was started in 2010 by ItsTooEarly (Armand Hernandez) and Oregon (Steve Dunn). Help keep the tradition alive. Feel free to click that 'LIKE' but lets not let it replace discussing and complimenting each others knives. DeSotoSky (Roger Yost)
On this Day, December 31st, 1862. The sinking of the ironclad warship USS Monitor.
The USS Monitor was the Union Navy's first ironclad ship. (an earlier attempt not completed) Ordered in October 1861 she was built and delivered in 101 days at a yard in Brooklyn. Costing $275,000 she had a length of 179' and width of 41'. Her most recognizable feature was the round turret containing 2 11" guns. The turret was constructed of 8 layers of 1" thick plating and the side plating near the waterline was 5". The goal was to have a minimal exposed profile. The rush for the ironclad to be built was because it was known the Confederacy was building an ironclad at the captured Norfolk Navy yard on the refloated hull of the USS Merrimack (correct spelling with a 'K'). The USS Merrimack was a steam frigate built in 1855. She was berthed at the Norfolk yard the day Virginia succeeded from the Union and her withdrawal was blocked. The Union burnt her to prevent capture. That seems to not have worked very well as the Confederacy refloated her hull and used it for the construction of the ironclad then named CSS Virginia. She is often incorrectly referred to by the original Union ship hull name and misspelled "Merrimac". Hampton Roads is a maritime (not terrestrial) location where the James river joins the Chesapeake. The most important maritime strategic location at the time as the James river leads towards Richmond and the upper Chesapeake towards Washington DC. In the battle of Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862 the USS Monitor and CSS Virginia fought to a standstill in a 4 hour battle. Each left the battle by mistakenly thinking the other had withdrawn. After the battle the CSS Virginia withdrew to Norfolk and was scuttled in May 1862 (a second time for that hull) to prevent capture when the Union recaptured Norfolk. At the end of 1862 the USS Monitor was under tow by a tug helping her move to join a Naval Blockade off North Carolina and was lost in a storm off Cape Hatteras. Best reference I found was separation of the overhanging upper hull from the lower in the rough seas. 47 men were rescued and 16 lost. The wreck site discovered 240' deep in 1973. Much work has been done with recovery of the turret, guns, engine, propeller, as well as many other artifacts.
I always think it is extra special when I can connect a Buck knife with my On this Day historical note. This week I have an Aurum etched 531 BuckLock featuring the Ironclads Monitor and the Merrimac(k) (CSS Virginia). These were part of a limited series featuring 7 Civil War Battles. They were a serialized issue of 100 knives each made for Gordon McCoy of Virginia. Anyone know? A businessman, Buck distributor, or regional sales person perhaps? Features a bias cut birch handle, stainless steel frame, and provided with a gray jewel case. The Monitor & Merrimac(k) knife is documented on the 1993 Special Projects List. The other 6 can be found on the 1992 list.
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