McHenry County CW Round Table Meets Today: USS Merrimack

The McHenry County (Illinois) Civil War Round Table (MCCWRT) will meet tomorrow, Tuesday, August 9, at the Woodstock Library at 7, both in person and via Zoom.

David Noe will speak on the USS Merrimack, the ship that was turned into the ironclad CSS Virginia by Confederates and fought the famous battle against the USS Monitor.  (Which ship were you pulling for?)

All are invited to attend.  You do not have to be a member, just have an interest in history.

There will also be several of us meeting at 3 Brothers restaurant in Woodstock (on Illinois Highway 47) at 5:30.  Come for dinner or dessert.

--Old Secesh

Ring My Bell

Sorry Anita Ward. Didn't mean to horn in on you song, EVEN if it WAS DISCO.

The National Museum of the US Navy in Washington, DC, has received the ship's bell of the USS Merrimack from private collector Adrian Piersall. It is not known if the bell were aboard the CSS Virginia, the ship built on the Merrimack's hull, during its famous fight with the USS Monitor.

It appears to have fire damage and a large dent, perhaps caused by a large timber falling on the heated bell when the merrimack was set fire.

The Grand Army of the Republic got it after the war and had it on exhibition until the 1920s when it passed into the hands of private collectors.

Ding Dong, the Bell is Back. --B-R

Ringing in My Ear-- USS Merrimack's Bell Goes on Display

The April 16th Military.com site had an article on the bell of the USS Merrimack going on display at the Museum of the US Navy in Washington, DC.

It was donated by Adrian Pearsal, a collector of antique nautical items who had originally contacted the National Geographic Society about it, but they had put him in touch with the naval museum.

It is unclear whether this bell was aboard the CSS Virginia in its fight against the USS Monitor, but there is severe fire damage and a large dent, perhaps made by a burning timber striking it while it was hot. Perhaps from when it was burned at the Norfolk Navy Yard in 1861.

For many years after the war, it was with the Grand Army of the Republic and on display, but at some point in the 1920s, it went into the hands of private collectors where it remained until now.

The Navy site called it the watch bell from the 1856 Merrimack. It was also presented by Doris Pearsal. www.history.navy.mil

As Anita Ward Said, "Ring My Bell." --Old B-Runner