| USS Monitor The epic battle in Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862 between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia was no accident. Upon learning that the Confederacy was building an ironclad ship from the hull of the scuttled USS Merrimack, the Union solicited proposals for the construction of its own ironclad.
The proposal submitted by Swedish inventor John Ericsson was accepted
and the USS Monitor was built at the Brooklyn, NY shipyards in a little over 100 days. Upon completion, the USS
Monitor immediately steamed to the Hampton Roads in Virginia where
she engaged the CSS Virginia in a four-hour duel. Although neither ship was severely damaged in the battle, the CSS Virginia withdrew up the James River, effectively removing it from the war. On
Dec. 31, 1862, the USS Monitor sank during a severe storm off the coast of Cape Hatteras, NC.
The "USN" symbol with three stars and anchor on the hat is based on the design found on the buttons used on Civil War era uniforms of the United States
Navy. |
