Hey everyone, thanks for downloading episode number 105 of our Civil War podcast.

I'm Rich.

And I'm Tracy.

Hello y'all.

Welcome to the podcast.

On March 8, 1862, the last day of the ballot p-ridge in Northwest Arkansas, a new era

in naval warfare began far to the east at Hampton Roads, Virginia.

When the Confederates had captured the Gospurt Navy Yard back in the spring of 1861, one

of the prizes they acquired was the damaged but salvageable hole of the steam frigate USS

Marymac.

The Federals had imperfectly scuttled the frigate and so although the Marymac burnt down to

the water line, the rebels were still able to salvage her hull and engines and rebuild

her as a different sort of warship, an iron clad.

Chris and the CSS Virginia, she was now an armored ram.

The Virginia sides were constructed of wooden panels to feet thick, covered with two layers

of two inch thick iron plates and there was a 1,500 pound iron ram protruding about three

feet from her prow.

She measured 275 feet in length, was just a tad over 51 feet in the beam and had a crew

of 320.

Her armament consisted of two 7 inch brick rifles, six 9 inch dogren smoothbores and two

6.4 inch brick rifles.

The CSS Virginia was commissioned on February 17, 1862 and on Saturday, March 8, she steamed

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