316 Norru Carorina Troops, 1861-65.

assistance, but co-operated, cordially, in the completion of the
Sieh ‘ares oo of about one year from the laying

; g§ which innumerable difficulties were over-
come by constant application, determined effort, and inces-
sant labor, day and night, success crowned the efforts of those
engaged in the undertaking.

Seizing an opportunity offered by comparatively high
water, the boat was launched, though not without misgiv-
Ings as to the result, for the yard being on a bluff she had to
take a jump, and as a matter of fact was “hogged” in the at-
tempt, but to our great gratification did not thereby spring a
leak. ee

The plans and specifications were prepared by John L.
Porter, Chief Constructor of the Confederate Navy, who
availed himself of the advantage gained by his exporlonias in
converting the frigate Merrimac into the iron-clad Virginia
at the Gosport navy yard.

The Albemarle was 152 feet long between perpendiculars ;
her extreme width was 45 feet; her depth from the guarded
to the keel was 9 feet, and when launched she drew 614 feet
of water, but after being ironed and completed her draught
was about 8 feet. The keel was laid, and construction ha

commenced by bolting down, across the center, a piece of
frame timber, which was of yellow pine, eight by ten inches.
Another frame of the same size was then dovetailed into this,
extending outwardly at an agle of 45 degrees, forming the -
side, and at the outer end of this the frame for the shield was
also dovetailed, the angle being 35 degrees, and then the top
deck was added, and so on around to the other end of the bot-
tom beam. Other beams were then bolted down to the keel,
and to tlie one first fastened, and so on, working fore and aft,
the main deck beams being interposed from stem to stern.
The shield was 60 feet in length and octagonal in form. When
this part of the work was completed she was a solid boat, built
of pine. frames, and if calked’would have floated in that con-
dition, but she was afterwards covered with 4-inch planking,
laid on longitudinally, as ships are usually planked, and this
was properly calked and pitched, cotton being used for calk-
ing instead of oakum, the latter being very scarce and the

 

THe Ram “ALBEMARLE.” 317

former almost the only article to be had in abundance. Much
of the timber was hauled long distances. Three portable
saw mills were obtained, one of which was located at the yard,
the others being moved about from time to time to such grow-
ing timber as could be procured. :

The iron plating consisted of two courses, 7 inches wide
and 2 inches thick, mostly rolled at the Tredegar Iron Works,
Richmond. The first course was laid lengthwise, over a
wooden backing, 16 inches in thickness, a 2-inch space, filled
in with wood, being left between each two layers to afford
space for bolting the outer course through the whole shield,
and the outer course was laid flush, forming a smooth surface,
similar to that of the Virginia. The inner part of the shield
was covered with a thin course of planking, nicely dressed,
mainly with a view to protection from splinters. Oak knees
were bolted in, to act as braces and supports for the shield.

The armament consisted of two rifled “Brooke” guns
mounted on pivot-carriages, each gun working through three
port-holes, as occasion required, there being one port-hole at
each end of the shield and two on each side. These were pro-
tected by iron covers lowered and raised by a contrivance
worked-on the gun-deck. She had two propellers driven by
two engines of 200-horse power, each, with 20-inch cylinders,
steam being supplied by two flue boilers, and the shafting was
geared together.

The sides were covered from the knuckle, four feet below
the deck, with iron plates two inches thick.

The prow was built of oak, running 18 feet back, on center
keelson, and solidly bolted, and it was covered on the outside
with iron plating, 2 inches thick, and, tapering off to a 4-inch
edge, formed the ram.

The work of putting on the armor was prosecuted for some
time under the most disheartening cireumstances, on account
of the difficulty of drilling holes in the iron intended for her
armor. But one small engine and drill could be had, and it
required, at the best, twenty minutes to drill an inch and a
quarter hole through the plates, and it looked as if we would
never accomplish the task. But “necessity is the mother of
invention,” and one of my associates in the enterprise, Peter