From the December 10, 2010, Daily Press.
The last time anyone set eyes on the engine the way it looks today was back on Christmas Eve 1862, a total of nearly 148 years ago.
Back in 2001, the engine, turret and other parts of the Monitor were brought up from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The years had produced a thick layer of marine concretion. Sand, mud and corrosion had combined with minerals to cover every feature of Swedish-born John Ericsson's ingenuous 30-ton machine.
For the past nine years, the engine sat in a tank receiving a desalination treatment.
Earlier in the week, conservators at the Mariners Museum and USS Monitor Center drained the 35,000 gallon tank and began the intensive removal of the 2-3-inch concretion with hammers, chisels and other hand tools.
Remove That Crud!! --Old B-Runner
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