The Lockwood barge pulls up to the grounds of The Mariner's Museum on Saturday and prepares to offload the Monitor's turret. Click image for a larger view. Click image for larger view and detailed explanation.

The Turret Completes its Journey

August 10, 2002

Michelle Fox
Education and Outreach Coordinator
Monitor National Marine Sanctuary

Today, the Monitor's turret completed its six-day journey from 240 feet below the ocean's surface off Cape Hatteras, NC, to The Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Va. An estimated 2,000 people gathered on museum grounds to see the turret travel from the James River to a conservation tank built especially for the turret by members of the Northrup Grumman Newport News Apprentice Program.

The names of the 16 men who were lost when the Monitor sank on December 31, 1862, were read as part of the arrival ceremony at the Museum.

John Hightower, President and CEO of The Mariner's Museum, introduced a series of speakers that included CDR Bobbie Scholley, Commanding Officer of Monitor Expedition 2002; Daniel Basta, Director of NOAA's National Marine Sanctuary Program; and, John Broadwater, Manager of NOAA's Monitor National Marine Sanctuary. Broadwater thanked CAPT Chris Murray for his efforts during the expedition as head of the saturation diving team.

After the ceremony, the turret was transported up Museum Drive to the turret tank next to the Monitor's engine and propellor, both of which were recovered in previous expeditions. The turret will undergo a 12- to 15-year conservation process that the public will be able to observe through portholes in the side of the tank. Once conserved, the turret will be placed on display at the Museum's USS Monitor Center, which is scheduled to open in 2007.

Sanctuary Manager John Broadwater thanks CAPT Chris Murray for his efforts and those of the Navy saturation divers during the turret arrival ceremony at The Mariners' Museum. Click image for larger view.

After being taken off the Lockwood barge and placed onto a truck, the turret makes its way up Museum Drive to the conservation tank where it will remain for 12 to 15 years. Click image for larger view.

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