The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Monitor and The Merrimac - Mar. 9th, 2003

http://www.civilwar-va.com/virginia/va-tidewater/showdown.html ^ | John V. Quarstein, director, Virginia War Museum

[SAMWolf]

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Showdown at Hampton Roads

On March 9, 1862, Hampton Roads was the scene of a terrific engagement, which revolutionized naval warfare. The first battle between ironclad ships, often called the Monitor-Merrimack (Virginia) engagement, is perhaps the most significant naval event of the entire Civil War. This duel is an epic tale that tells how steam-powered iron ships rang the death knell for wooden vessels and echoed the dawn of modern navies.

When the Confederate batteries encircling Charleston Harbor opened fire on Fort Sumter during the early morning of April 12, 1861, the bombardment set in motion a naval race resulting in the first battle between ironclad ships. Little did the Confederates realize that soon their harbors would be blockaded by the Union fleet attempting to sever the vital link between the agrarian South and industrialized European nations. The question in the spring of 1861 was how could the Confederacy maintain this critical industrial lifeline.

Onto this stage stepped Confederate Secretary of the Navy Stephen Russell Mallory. Perhaps one of Jefferson Davis' better cabinet appointments, Mallory served as the pre-war chairman of the U.S. Senate's Naval Affairs Committee and immediately recognized that the South could never match the North's superior shipbuilding capabilities unless a novel weapon was introduced into the fray. Mallory's solution was to build or purchase a fleet of ironclad vessels.



The concept of pitting "iron against wood" was not new naval warfare. The Koreans had repulsed a Japanese invasion in 1592 with an iron-covered "tortoise ship," and during the Crimean War the French utilized floating ironcased batteries to shell Russian forts. Based on this experience in 1859, the French navy launched the Gloire, which was a traditional warship design covered with iron plates. The Royal Navy, not to be outdone by the French, introduced an ambitious production program. The H.M.S. Warrior and H.M.S. Black Prince were two of 10 armorclads under construction in British shipyards by early 1861. Despite the European rush to build iron warships, the U.S. Navy had not made any concerted effort to construct armored vessels by the time of the Civil War. Mallory's desire to construct Confederate blockade-breaking iron-plated steam ships was given a tremendous boost when Virginia seceded from the Union. The Federals were forced to abandon Gosport Navy Yard across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk in Portsmouth. Gosport had been one of the U.S. Navy's finest shipyards, containing excellent shipbuilding facilities and materials. Of perhaps equal importance was that the retreating Federals had scuttled several ships, including the steam frigate U.S.S. Merrimack. The Confederates then raised the Merrimack and began to convert the frigate into an ironclad. The effort would tax Southern resources severely, yet it was an amazing test of Confederate ingenuity.

The Merrimack was completely reconfigured during its conversion. A 178-foot long slope-sided casemate, covered by 4 inches of ironplate bolted to 24 inches of oak and pine backing, was constructed atop the ship's charred hull. The ironclad was armed with six 9-inch Dahlgren smoothbores, two 6.4-inch Brooke rifles, and two 7-inch Brooke rifles, which served as pivot guns. A 6-foot-long, 1,500-pound cast iron ram completed the vessel's weaponry.



The Merrimack was launched on Feb. 17, 1862, and recommissioned as the C.S.S. Virginia. The ironclad appeared to be a powerful vessel, but there were numerous defects. With her 268-foot length and draught of 22 feet, the Virginia proved to be difficult to maneuver. The two salvaged 600-horsepower engines of the old Merrimack, previously condemned, were used to propel the Virginia. Lt. John Taylor Wood noted that the ironclad was as unmanageable as a "waterlogged vessel."

While the Southerners grappled with the Merrimack's conversion, Union leaders also recognized the importance of building ironclads. The U.S. Navy established an ironclad board in August 1861 to review armored ship concepts. The board reluctantly selected John Ericsson's novel design as one of three iron vessels to be constructed in East Coast shipyards. The U.S.S. Monitor, initially called "Ericsson's Folly," was truly a unique vessel. The ironclad was 173 feet in length, weighed 776 tons and had a beam of 41.5 feet. With a draft of 11 feet and a freeboard of less than 1 foot, the ironclad was virtually awash with the sea. The Monitor's most impressive and dominant feature was its rotating turret, which contained two 11-inch smoothbore Dahlgrens. One crew member noted the ironclad as "the strangest craft I had ever seen"; and another observed before the Monitor left New York, "She had not been pronounced seaworthy, and no one could safely judge of her fighting qualities."

The Monitor was constructed in a little more than 100 days. Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles wanted the Union ironclad to reach Hampton Roads quickly to destroy the Confederate ironclad in drydock. His dreams would be shattered by a mere day.



Even though both ironclads were ready for battle by early March 1862, the Merrimack, now re-christened as the C.S.S. Virginia, would win the race to gain naval supremacy in Hampton Roads. While the Monitor struggled against a gale along the mid-Atlantic coast toward the Chesapeake Capes, the Confederate ironclad embarked on its first cruise. The Confederates, however, were unsure of the vessel's capabilities as the ironclad steamed away from its dock at Gosport Navy Yard. Most of the officers and crew believed the trip down river was just a trial run, but Flag Officer Franklin Buchanan had other thoughts. "Old Buck" had been assigned to the Virginia because of his aggressive nature and he planned to test the vessel in combat. Buchanan had corresponded with Maj. Gen. John Bankhead Magruder, commander of the Confederate Army of the Peninsula, in late February to develop a joint Army-Navy operation against the Union Camp Butler on Newport News Point. Even though "Prince John" had agreed initially to this plan, he backed off as time neared to execution, stating that "no one ship can produce such an impression upon the troops at Newport News as to cause them to evacuate the fort."

Undaunted, when the Virginia reached Craney island at 12:30 pm on March 8, 1862, Buchanan ordered the ironclad forward to attack the Union fleet. The Virginia entered Hampton Roads appearing, according to Henry Reaney of the tugboat Zouave, like "the roof of a very big barn belching forth smoke as from a chimney on fire." The entire Union fleet went to battle stations. The Federals had been expecting the ironclad for some time and the U.S.S. Congress and U.S.S. Cumberland were positioned off Newport News Point. Buchanan's first target was the Cumberland. He previously had told Chief Engineer H. Ashton Ramsay, "I am going to ram the Cumberland, I'm told she has the new rifles, the only ones in their whole fleet we have cause to fear. The moment we are out in the Roads I'm going to make right for her and ram her."

As the Virginia began her run at the Cumberland, the Union ships and shore batteries began shelling the ironclad with little impact. The shot "had no effect on her," noted Lt. Thomas O. Selfridge of the Cumberland "but glanced off like pebble stones." Methodically passing the 50-gun U.S.S.Congress, the Virginia rammed the 24-gun sailing sloop-of-war Cumberland, creating a hole, according to Lt. John Taylor Wood, "wide enough to drive in a horse and cart." The mortally wounded Cumberland began to sink and trapped the Virginia's ram within her. The Virginia's engines struggled to free her from being pulled under the waves with the Cumberland. The ironclad survived only because her ram broke off.



The Virginia backed clear and continued to pour shot and shell into the Cumberland. Both were now engulfed in gun smoke. The Virginia's sloped sides, coated with grease to help deflect shot, began to crackle and pop from the heat. Midshipman Hardin Littlepage recalled that the ironclad seemed to be "frying from one end to the other." Littlepage later recounted one excited exchange between two crew members: "Jack, don't this smell like hell?" "It certainly does, and I think that we will all be there in a few minutes." It was indeed hell on the Cumberland. Master Moses Stuyvesant remembered it as "a scene of carnage and destruction never to be recalled without horror." Finally, the Cumberland lurched forward and sank with all her flags flying as Lt. George U. Morris called to the crew, "Give them a Broadside boys, as she goes."

Buchanan now turned his ironclad toward the Congress. The Union frigate had run aground trying to escape, and the Virginia could approach only within a hundred yards, pounding the Congress with shot and shell for almost an hour until the Congress surrendered. While overseeing the removal of the wounded from the Congress, musket fire from troops on Newport News Point wounded Buchanan. He ordered the destruction of the Congress and then gave up his command to Lt. Catesby ap Roger Jones. The Virginia moved to attack the U.S.S. Minnesota, one of three vessels that had run aground coming to the aid of the Cumberland and Congress, and was saved from certain destruction only because the tide had ebbed. The Confederate ironclad returned to Sewell's Point determined to finish destroying the Union fleet the next morning. President Abraham Lincoln viewed the sinking of the Congress and Cumberland as the greatest calamity since Bull Run. Secretary of War Edwin W. Stanton feared that the Merrimack would "soon come up the Potomac and disperse Congress, destroy the Capitol and public buildings." Little did Northern leaders realize that the Confederate ironclad was considered by its commander so unseaworthy that it could not leave Hampton Roads.



As the Union high command fretted, the U.S.S. Monitor, which almost had sunk en route from New York, entered Hampton Roads aglow from the flames consuming the Congress. The Union ironclad positioned itself next to the U.S.S. Minnesota to await the return of the C.S.S. Virginia.

On the morning of March 9, Catesby Jones got the Virginia underway only to be amazed by the sight of the Monitor moving away from the Minnesota. One Confederate noted, "Such a craft as the eyes of a seaman never looked upon before - an immense shingle floating in the water, with a gigantic cheesebox rising from its center; no sails, no wheels, no smokestack, no guns. What could it be?" Jones immediately recognized it as Ericsson's iron battery.

During the next four hours, the Monitor and Virginia dueled each other, often at a range of less than 10 yards. Neither vessel was able to gain an advantage. Worden hoped that firing his heavy shot, 168-pound spherical projectiles using 15 pounds of powder, would loosen or break the Virginia's ironplates. In turn, the Virginia was at a disadvantage. She had only explosive shells, hot shot, and canister specifically to use against wooden vessels. Thus, Jones's strategy was to concentrate on the Minnesota and if necessary to try to ram or board the Monitor.

The Monitor's small size and quickness frustrated the Confederates, who tried to fire at the Union ironclad's gun ports but discovered that the turret revolved too quickly. Nevertheless, there were several problems on board the Monitor despite her many technological advantages. The port stoppers proved to be almost too heavy to operate and only one gun could be fired at a time. Both ports were left open because it was the only way to enhance the gun crew's vision since the communications system between the pilothouse and turret failed to perform. The turret's rotating system also malfunctioned. Thus, the turret could not be stopped with any precision. Eventually, the guns were discharged - on the fly as the turret turned past the target.



After two hours of combat, the Virginia finally was able to move against the Minnesota when the Monitor withdrew to replenish ammunition, yet ran aground. For almost an hour the Union ironclad fired shot against the Confederate vessel's iron sides. The Virginia finally freed itself and rammed the Monitor, but only with a glancing blow. The Monitor's evasive action enabled Jones to attack the Minnesota again until the Monitor once again could block the Virginia's attack against the wooden vessel. The Monitor now decided to ram the Virginia, seeking to strike the larger ironclad propeller and disable her. The Union ironclad missed her target because of a malfunctioning steering system. As the Monitor passed the stern of the Virginia, a shot hit the Monitor's pilothouse, blinding her commander, Lt. John Lorimer Worden, and causing the Monitor to break off action temporarily. Jones considered renewing the attack against the Minnesota but the receding tide prompted him to order the Virginia back to Norfolk. Lt. Samuel Dana Greene, the Monitor's executive officer, finally was able to bring the Federal ironclad back into action as the Virginia steamed away. The first battle between ironclads was over. The two vessels were destined never to fight each other again and both were later destroyed, the Virginia by its own crew on May 11, 1862, the Monitor by a storm on Dec. 31, 1862.

Neither ironclad had been damaged seriously during the March 9 engagement and both claimed victory. Tactical success must be accorded to the Monitor, as the Union ironclad had defended the Minnesota and the rest of the wooden Union fleet effectively. The strategic victor, however, was the Virginia, as the Confederate ironclad retained control of Hampton Roads. The Virginia's ability to defend Norfolk and the James River approach to Richmond altered and delayed Union Gen. George B. McClellan's attempt to strike at the Confederate capital by way of the Peninsula.



Perhaps of even greater importance was the engagement's impact on naval warfare. The Virginia's sinking of two wooden vessels on March 8 and the technological superiority of the Monitor's iron revolving turret in effect sank all of the world's wooden navies. Iron now ruled supreme across the seas.

[The Real Deal]

May God bless you too!

[The Real Deal]

Good morning AntiJen! BTTT!!!!!

[The Real Deal]

Is this a picture of the final day? It looks like the on board powder went off.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on March 09:
1454 Amerigo Vespucci explorer, This could be Vespucciland
1564 David Fabricius Essen Germany, astronomer (discovered variable star)
1568 Aloysius "Luigi" van Gonzaga Italian prince/Jesuit/saint
1697 Friederike C Neuber German actress/author (Allerkostbarste Schatz)
1735 August Bernhard Valentin Herbing composer
1737 Josef Myslivecek composer
1753 Jean-Baptiste Kléber French General/architect (Mainz, Fleurus)
1758 Franz Joseph Gall German/French physician (frenology)
1777 Alexander Orlowski Polish painter/cartoonist/graphic artist
1791 George Hayward US, surgeon, 1st to use ether
1810 Jean-Georges Kastner composer
1812 Jakob Eduard Schmolzer composer
1814 Taras Shevchenko Ukraine, national poet/painter/professor of Kiev
1824 Leland Stanford (Governor/Senator)/found Stanford University
1826 Jean Joseph Bott German violinist/composer
1839 Felix Huston Robertson Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1928
1839 Modest P Mussorgsky Russian composer (Boris Godunov)
1848 Martin Pierre Joseph Marsick composer
1850 Alexandre Luigini composer
1859 Richard Engländer [Peter Altenberg], Austria, author (Lebensabend)
1865 Margaret Murray Washington wife of Booker T/head (NACW 1896..1918)
1874 Johann Richard Ohlsson composer
1875 Martin Fallas Shaw composer
1877 Emil Abderhalden Swiss physiologist/bio-chemist
1881 Enver Pasja Turkish General/politician
1881 Ernest Bevin British minister of Labour/Foreign affairs
1883 Umberto Saba writer
1885 Ringgold "Ring" Lardner baseball player
1887 Phil Mead cricketer (strong batsman for England pre- & post-WWI)
1890 Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov Soviet foreign minister (UN)
1892 David Garnett England, novelist/editor (Lady into Fox)
1892 Frank Puglia Sicily Italy, actor (Black Orchid, Jungle Book)
1892 Joseph Weinheber Austria poet/writer (Adel und Untergang)
1892 Vita Sackville-West England, novelist/poet (The Land)
1893 Edgar Scauflaire Belgian muralist/decorator
1893 Hans Munch composer
19-- Bradley Lockerman Milford CT, actor (Shep-General Hospital)
19-- Finn Carter actress (As the World Turns)
19-- George Jenesky Los Angeles CA, actor (Nick-Days of Our Life)
19-- Gregory Hex rocker (Kik Tracee-Field Trip)
19-- Iris Chacón Puerto Rico, Spanish personality (Iris Chacon Show)
19-- Lauren Koslow Boston MA, actress (Margo-Bold & Beautiful)
19-- Walter Mercado Ponce PR, astrologer (Walter Mercado Show)
1900 Aimone duke of Spoleta/Aosta Italian king of Croatia (1941-43)
1902 Edward Durell Stone US, architect (US Embassy, New Delhi)
1902 Will Greer Frankfort IN, actor (Grandpa Walton-The Waltons)
1905 Félix Labisse French painter (libidoscaphes)
1905 Grigori Kozintsev Kiev Ukraine, director (Hamlet, King Lear)
1905 Peter C Quennell English biographer/critic (Byron in Italy)
1905 Rex Warner English poet/writer (Wild Goose Chase)
1907 Henry Leland Clarke composer
1908 Luiz Cosme composer
1910 Ed[uard] Hoornik Dutch writer/poet (Survivor)
1910 Samuel Barber West Chester PA, composer (School for Scandal)
1911 Ramon Campbell Batista composer
1912 Alan David Melville polymath
1913 Ger[ar]da Brautigam journalist/Dutch 2nd Chamber (PvdA)
1914 Fred Clark Lincoln CA, actor (Burns & Allen, Auntie Mame, Hazard)
1915 Pete Gray one-armed outfielder (St Louis Browns)
1917 Dante B Fascell (Representative-Democrat-FL, 1955- )
1918 Marguerite Chapman Chatham NY, actress (Spy Smasher, Flight to Mars)
1918 Mickey [Frank Morrison] Spillane Brooklyn NY, mystery writer (I the Jury)
1920 Carl Betz Pittsburgh PA, actor (Alex Stone-Donna Reed Show)
1922 Herbert P Douglas Jr Pittsburgh PA, long jumper (Olympics-bronze-1948)
1923 André Courréges France, fashion designer (introduced the miniskirt)
1923 James Buckley (Senator-Republican-NY)
1924 Konstantin Iliev composer
1926 Celso Garrido Lecca composer
1926 Gerrit A Kooy Dutch sociologist (Apartheid & work in South Africa)
1926 Irene Papas Corinth Greece, actress (Moses The Lawgiver)
1927 Hans Ludwig Schilling composer
1927 Jack Jensen baseball player (American League MVP 1958)
1927 John Beckwith composer
1929 Hugh Desmond Hoyte president (Guyana, 1985-92)
1929 Marie Cardinal writer
1930 Harrie J B Aarts Dutch 2nd chamber member (CDA)
1930 Thomas Schippers Kalamazoo MI, conductor (Amahl & Night Visitors)
1931 Taina Elg Helsinki Finland, actress (Hercules in New York, Les Girls)
1932 Heere Heeresma Dutch writer (Han de Wit goes in development aid)
1933 Lloyd Price Kenner LA, singer (Lawdy Miss Clawdy, Misty, Just Because, Come to Me)
1933 William Francis McBeth composer
1934 Joyce Van Patten Queens NY, actress (Good Guys, Don Rickles Show)
1934 Yuri Gagarin Russia, cosmonaut, 1st man into space (aboard Vostok 1)
1935 Joe Gallison Houston TX, actor (PT-109, Neil-Days of our Lives)
1935 Keely Smith Norfolk VA, singer (Mrs Louis Prima)
1935 Sister Bernard Ncube South African nun
1936 [Aino] Elina Salo Sipoo Finland, actress (Hamlet Goes Business)
1936 Glenda Jackson Birkenhead Cheshire England, actress (Hopscotch, Touch of Class)
1936 Marty Ingels Brooklyn NY, comedian (I'm Dickens He's Fenster)
1936 Mickey Gilley Ferriday LA, country singer (Urban Cowboy)
1937 Grahame Chevalier cricketer (one Test for South Africa 1970, 0 & 0, 5-100)
1938 Charles Siebert Kenosha WI, actor (One Day at A Time, Trapper John)
1940 Raul Julia San Juan Puerto Rico, actor (Addams Family, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Eyes of Laura Mars)
1941 Ger van Each sculptor
1941 Jim Colbert Elizabeth NJ, PGA golfer (1969 Monsanto Open)
1942 Bert Campaneris shortstop (Oakland A's)
1942 John Cale Welsh/US bassist/violinist/singer (Velvet Underground)
1942 Mark Lindsay Eugene OR, rocker (Paul Revere & the Raiders)
1943 Bobby Fischer US, world chess champion (1972-75)
1943 Trish Van Devere [Patricia Dressel] Englewood Cliffs NJ, actress (Changeling, Movie Movie, Hearse)
1944 Geoff Arnold cricketer (England medium-pacer in 34 Tests 1967-75)
1944 Lee Irvine cricketer (South African batsman, only Tests in 1970)
1944 Trevor Burton rocker (Move)
1945 Laura Lee [Rundless] singer (Dirty Man, Women's Love Rights)
1945 Ray Royer rocker (Procol Harum-Whiter Shade of Pale)
1945 Robin Trower London England, rocker (Procol Harum-Whiter Shade of Pale)
1946 Gherman Semyonovich Arzamazov Russian cosmonaut (backup TM-6)
1948 Jamie Lyn Bauer Phoenix AZ, actress (Young & Restless, Centerfold Girls)
1948 Jeffrey Osborne Providence RI, rock vocalist (On the Wings of Love)
1948 Jimmy Fadden Long Beach CA, singer (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band)
1949 Kalevi Aho composer
1950 Danny Sullivan Indy-car racer (over 10 wins)
1952 Iuliana Semenova USSR, basketball (Olympics-gold-1976)
1952 William Kirby Cullen Santa Ana CA, actor (How the West Was Won)
1953 Henriëtte J Toll actress (Soldier of Orange)
1954 Charmain Elaine Sylvers rocker
1954 Keven Wade Chappaqua NY, screen writer (Working Girls)
1955 Fernando Bujones Miami FL, ballet dancer
1955 Ornella Muti Rome Italy, actress (Flash Gordon, Most Beautiful Wife)
1955 Teo Fabi formula-1 Indy-car racer (rookie of year-1983)
1957 Faith Daniels news anchor (CBS-TV)
1957 Jeff Senior Melbourne VIC, Australasia golfer
1957 Jon Engen Oslo Norway, US biathlete (Olympics-1994)
1958 Martin Fry rock vocalist (ABC-All of My Heart)
1959 Barbie doll (Mattel)
1959 Kato [Brian] Kaelin actor (Beach Fever)/OJ houseguest/witness
1959 Lonny Price New York NY, actor (Muppets Take Manhattan)
1960 Linda Fiorentino Philadelphia PA, actress (Jade, Last Seduction, Moderns)
1960 Mike Leach Minneapolis MN, tennis star
1962 Brian Green Columbus IN, actor (Brian Bodine-All My Children, Sam Fowler-Another World)
1963 Kent Ferguson Cedar Rapids IA, diver (Olympics-92, 96)
1963 Terry Mulholland Uniontown PA, pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies)
1964 Phil Housley St Paul MN, NHL defenseman (New Jersey Devils, Team USA Olympics-98)
1965 Benito Santiago Ponce PR, catcher (Philadelphia Phillies)
1965 Brian Bosworth NFL quarterback (Seattle)
1965 Juliette Binoche Paris France, actress (English Patient, Unbearable Lightness of Being)
1966 Louis Oliver NFL safety (Miami Dolphins)
1967 Curt Schreiner Albany NY, biathlete (Olympics-1994)
1967 Eric Flaim Pembroke MA, short track skater (Olympics-1994)
1967 Michael Kiselak CFL corner (Toronto Argonauts)
1969 Bryce Burnett NFL/WLAF tight end (Broncos, Barcelona Dragons)
1969 George Nimako CFL safety (Toronto Argonauts)
1969 Mahmoud Abdul Rauf NBA guard (Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets)
1970 Melissa Rathburn-Nealy US soldier (Iraqi POW)
1971 Bev Oden Millington TN, volleyball middle blocker (Olympics-96)
1971 Emmanuel Lewis Brooklyn NY, actor (Webster)
1971 Jiro Nihei hockey goaltender (Team Japan 1998)
1971 Lou Benfatti NFL defensive tackle (New York Jets)
1971 Sean Holcomb NFL linebacker (New England Patriots)
1972 Marcia M Griffith Washington DC, Miss Maryland-America (1995)
1972 Sara Nicole Williams Miss Washington-USA (1997)
1973 David Prinosil Olmutz Czechoslovakia, tennis star (1995 ATP Newport)
1973 Josh LaRocca WLAF quarterback (Rhein Fire)
1973 Troy Bailey WLAF defensive end (Scotland Claymores)
1974 Mark Harrity cricketer (promising South Australia left-arm fast bowler)
1975 Adonal Foyle NBA center (San Francisco Warriors)
1975 Roy Makaay Dutch soccer player (Vitesse)
1977 Radek Dvorak Tabor Czechoslovakia, NHL left wing (Florida Panthers)

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Deaths which occurred on March 09:
1566 David Riccio Italian singer/secretary of Mary Stuart, murdered
1620 Aegidius Albertinus German writer (Lucifer's Kingdom), dies at 59
1661 Jules Cardinal Mazarin chief minister of France, dies
1688 Claude Mellan French engraver/cartoonist/painter, dies at 89
1693 Antonio Caraffa Italian General (Eperieser Bloedgericht), dies at 46?
1706 Johann Pachelbel German organist/composer, dies at 52
1747 Jacob Campo Weyerman South Netherlands adventurer/painter/writer, dies at 69
1800 Dominique Della-Maria composer, dies at 30
1819 Janos Fusz composer, dies at 41
1824 Jacobus J Cramer priest of Holland/Zealand/Friesland, dies at 79
1827 Franz Xaver Gerl composer, dies at 62
1831 Friedrich M Klinger German (stage)author (Plimplamplasko), dies at 79
1870 Theodore Labarre composer, dies at 65
1877 Mark Prager Lindo English/Dutch author (Netherlands Spectator), dies at 58
1895 Leopold von Sacher-Masoch Austrian writer (Masochism), dies at 59
1913 Eberhard Nestle German biblical scholar, dies at 61
1916 Ken Hutchings cricketer (exciting England batsman, WWI), dies
1918 [Benjamin] Franc[lin] Wedekind German writer/press secretary, dies at 53
1931 Ida B Wells-Barnett famous black, dies in Chicago at 78
1938 Sydney Baynes composer, dies at 59
1941 Carlos Pedrell composer, dies at 62
1943 Oskar Hêks Czechoslovakian marathon runner/antifascist, dies in Auschwitz
1947 Stanley Jackson cricketer (20 Tests for England 1893-1905), dies
1955 Matthew A Henson met Peary on 6/4/1909 at North Pole, dies at 88
1962 Dr Howard Engstrom Boston MA, a designer of Univac computer dies at 59
1962 Howard Engstrom Boston MA, a designer of Univac computer, dies at 59
1964 Johanna W "Mina" Bakker Dutch actress (Boefje), dies at 87
1964 Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck Prussian General/politician, dies at 93
1965 Anthon van der Horst Dutch organist/composer, dies at 65
1965 Kazys Boruta writer, dies
1969 Riad chief of staff (Egyptian army), dies
1969 Richard Crane actor (Surfside 6), dies at 50
1971 Jean-Pierre Guezek composer, dies at 36
1974 Earl W Sutherland Jr US pharmacologist (Nobel 1971), dies at 58
1975 Joseph Dunninger New York NY, mentalist (Amazing Dunninger), dies at 82
1975 Shirley Ross actress (Night Vision, Mindkiller), dies at 62
1979 Barbara Mullen actress (Talk of a Million), dies at 64
1980 Olga Chekova actress (Moulin Rouge, Pawns of Possession), dies at 82
1981 Max Delbrück German/US biologist (Nobel 1969), dies at 74
1982 Alan Badel actor (Shogun), dies of a heart attack at 58
1982 Rex Marshall TV announcer (Circuit Rider, Herman Hickman Show), dies
1982 Richard A Butler England, minister of Finance, dies at 79
1983 Faye Emerson actress (I've Got a Secret), dies of cancer at 65
1985 Edward Andrews actor (Broadside, Harry-Supertrain), dies at 70
1986 Ned Calmer TV host (In the First Person), dies at 78
1988 Kurt Georg Kiesinger West German chancellor (1966-69), dies at 83
1989 Robert Mapplethorpe US photographer, dies at 42
1992 Felipe Turich actor (Lawless), dies
1992 Jack McEdward assistant director (Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell), dies at 94
1992 James Brooks US mural painter (Flight, La Guardia NY), dies at 85
1992 Menachim Begin Israeli prime minister (1977-1983, Nobel 1979), dies at 79
1993 Ad van Gessel Dutch actor (Everything For Our Soldiers), dies
1993 Bob Crosby swing-era bandleader (Bobcats), dies of cancer at 79
1994 Charles Bukowski author/poet, dies of leukemia at 73
1994 Fernando Rey Spanish actor (French Connection), dies of cancer at 76
1994 John Harrison South African correspondent (BBC), dies at 48
1994 Lawrence E Spivak journalist (Meet the Press), dies at 93
1994 Louis Freeman band leader, dies at 100
1994 Maurice "Moe" Purtill jazz drummer, dies at 77
1995 Ian Ballantine publisher, dies of heart attack at 79
1995 Ruud van den Hende Dutch sports reporter, dies at 63
1996 Alan Hugh Iliffe psychologist, dies at 77
1996 Elman Ali Ahmed peace campaigner, dies at 42
1996 Peter Mansfield writer, dies at 67
1997 Notorius B I G [Biggie Small Chris Walkin], rapper, shot dead at 24
1997 Terry Nation writer (Dr Who, Blake 7) at 66

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On this day...
1452 Pope Nicolaas I crowns Frederik III Roman Catholic-German emperor
1496 Jews are expelled from Carintha Austria
1497 Nicolaus Copernicus 1st recorded astronomical observation,
1500 Pedro Cabral departs with 13 ships to India
1522 Marten Luther preaches his Invocavit
1551 Emperor Karel appoints son Philip as heir to the throne
1562 Kissing in public banned in Naples (punishable by death)
1617 Sweden & Russia sign Peace of Stolbowa
1640 Pierre Corneilles "Horace" premieres in Paris France
1642 English Queen Henriette Mary arrives in Hellevoetsluis Netherlands
1697 Czar Peter the Great begins tour of West-Europe
1701 France, Cologne & Bavaria sign alliance
1721 English Chancellor Exchequer John Aislabie confined in London Tower
1741 English fleet under Admiral Ogle begins assault on Cartagena
1745 Bells for 1st American carillon shipped from England to Boston
1791 George Hayward, Us, surgeon, 1st to use ether
1796 Napoleon Bonaparte marries Josephine de Beauharnais
1798 Dr George Balfour becomes 1st naval surgeon in the US navy
1820 James Monroe's daughter Maria marries in the White House
1820 Philippines chases out foreigners; about 125 die
1822 Charles M Graham of New York patents artificial teeth
1839 Prussian government limits work week for children to 51 hours
1841 US Supreme Court rules Negroes are free (Amistad Incident)
1842 Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Nabucco" premieres in Milan
1844 Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Hernani" premieres in Venice
1849 Carl Nikolais opera "Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor" premieres
1858 Albert Potts of Philadelphia patents the street mailbox
1860 1st Japanese ambassador arrives in San Francisco en route to Washington DC
1861 Confederate currency authorized-$50, $100, $500, $1,000
1862 "Monitor" (Union) & "Merrimack" (Rebel) battle in Hampton Roads
1864 Ulysses S Grant is appointed commander of Union Army
1868 The opera "Hamlet" premieres in Paris France
1873 Royal Canadian Mounted Police founded
1889 Battle at Gallabat (Metema); Mahdi's beat Abyssinian emperor John IV
1889 Kansas passes 1st general antitrust law in US
1893 Congo cannibals killed 1000s of Arabs
1895 Stanley Cup: Montréal Victorias awarded cup, as Queens University (Kingston Ontario) loses to Montréal AAA, 5-1
1897 Cleveland Spiders sign Louis Sockalexis, full-blooded Penobscot
1897 Indian fans start calling the team Indians (in 1915 becomes official)
1897 Premiere of (parts of) Gustav Mahler's 3rd Symphony (Berlin)
1902 Composer Gustav Mahler marries Alma Schindler in Vienna
1904 Brandon's Lester Patrick becomes 1st hockey defenseman to score a goal
1907 1st involuntary sterilization law enacted, Indiana
1907 Lady Gregory's "Rising of the Moon" premieres in Dublin
1914 Henry Colijn appointed as director of Bataafsche Petroleum Co
1914 US Senator Albert Fall (Teapot Dome) demands "Cubanisation of Mexico"
1916 General Fransisco "Pancho" Villa leads Mexican band raid on Columbus NM (17 killed)
1916 Germany declares war against Portugal
1918 Russian Bolshevik Party becomes the Communist Party
1918 Ukrainian mobs massacre Jews of Seredino Buda
1918 Wageningen Agricultural College Netherlands opens
1922 Eugene O'Neill's "Hairy Ape" premieres in New York NY
1922 KJR-AM in Seattle WA begins radio transmissions
1923 Amsterdam taxi strike ended
1923 Elmer Rice's "Adding Machine" premieres in New York NY
1923 NHL Championship: Montréal Canadiens outscore Ottawa Senators, 3-2, in 2
1924 Italy annexes Fiume
1924 South Slavia aproves Italy's annexation of Fiume (Rijeka)
1926 Bertha Landes elected 1st woman mayor of Seattle
1929 Marcel Pagnol's "Marius" premieres in Paris France
1932 Eamon De Valera becomes President of Ireland
1932 Former Chinese emperor Henry Pu-Yi installed as head of Manchuria
1933 Bulgarian communists Dimitrov, Popov & Vassili arrested in Berlin
1933 Congress is called into special session by FDR, & began its "100 days"
1936 Babe Ruth turns down Reds to make a comeback as a player
1942 Construction of the Alaska Highway began
1943 Delft opposition group-Pahud de Mortanges overthrown
1943 Greek Jews of Salonika are transported to Nazi extermination camps
1945 334 US B-29 Superfortresses attack Tokyo with 120,000 fire bomb
1945 Japanese proclaim the "independence" of Indo-China
1946 Dutch troops land at Batavia/Semarang
1946 Ted Williams is offered $500,000 to play in Mexican League, he refuses
1947 US Ladies Figure Skating Championship won by Gretchen Merrill
1947 US Men's Figure Skating Championship won by Richard Button
1948 Provisionary Indonesian government installed in Batavia
1949 Brigadier General Edwin K Wright, USA, ends term as deputy director of CIA
1949 England beat South Africa by scoring 174 runs in 94 minutes
1950 Willie Sutton robs Manufacturers Bank of $64,000 in New York NY
1952 Heinz Neuhaus wins Europe Heavyweight Boxing title
1953 Josef Stalin buried in Moscow
1954 1st local color TV commercial WNBT-TV (WNBC-TV) New York NY (Castro Decorators)
1954 Edward R Murrow criticizes Senator Joseph McCarthy (See it Now)
1954 WMUR TV channel 9 in Manchester NH (ABC) begins broadcasting
1956 Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus arrested & exiled to Seychelles
1956 Weather forecasting phone line set up in London England
1957 8.1 earthquake shakes Andreanof Islands, Alaska
1958 George Yardley (Pistons) is 1st NBAer to score 2,000 points in season
1959 "Juno" opens at Winter Garden Theater NYC for 16 performances
1959 1st known radar contact is made with Venus
1959 Barbie, the popular girls' doll, debuted, over 800 million sold
1961 1st animal returned from space, dog named Blackie aboard Sputnik 9
1961 Mine cave-in in Japan, kills 72
1961 Sputnik 9 carries Chernushka (dog) into orbit
1961 Supremes release "I Want A Guy" & "Never Again"
1962 Egyptian President Nasser declares Gaza belongs to Palestinians
1962 US advisors in South-Vietnam join the fight
1963 Beatles began 1st British tour, supporting Tommy Roe & Chris Montez
1964 1st Ford Mustang produced
1964 Creighton's Paul Silas grabs Midwest record 27 rebounds against Oklahoma
1964 Supreme Court issues New York Times vs Sullivan decision, public officials must prove malice to claim libel & recover damages
1966 Andrew Brimmer becomes 1st black Governor of Federal Reserve Board
1967 Svetlana Allilueva, Stalin's daughter, defected to the West
1968 10th Grammy Awards: Up Up & Away, Sergeant Pepper win
1971 J M Noreiga takes 9-95 West Indies vs India at Port-of-Spain
1972 Players on White Sox vote 31-0 in favor of a strike, if necessary
1974 Last Japanese soldier, a guerrilla operating in Philippines, surrenders, 29 years after World War II ended
1975 "Lieutenant" opens at Lyceum Theater NYC for 9 performances
1976 1st female cadets accepted to West Point Military Academy
1976 Islander Glenn Resch's 10th shut-out opponent-Blues 4-0
1977 Admiral Stansfield Turner, USN (Ret), becomes 12th director of CIA replacing acting director Knoche
1977 Hanafi Moslems invade 3 buildings in Washington DC, siege ended March 11th
1978 World Ice Dance Championship in Ottawa Canada won by Natalia Linichuk & Gennadi Karponosov (USSR)
1978 World Ice Pairs Figure Skating Championship in Ottawa won by Irina Rodnina & Alexandr Zaitsev (USSR)
1978 World Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Ottawa won by Anett Potzsch (German Democratic Republic)
1978 World Men's Figure Skating Championship in Ottawa won by Charles Tickner (USA)
1979 Bowie Kuhn orders baseball to give equal access to female reporters
1979 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1980 Flemish/Walloon battles in Belgium, 40 injured
1980 Joanne Carner wins LPGA Sunstar '80 Golf Tournament
1981 Dan Rather becomes primary anchorman of CBS-TV News
1983 Caryl Churchill's "Fen" premieres in London
1983 Zimbabwe opposition leader Joshua Nkomo flees to Botswana
1984 Emile Gumbs' Anguilla National Alliance wins elections
1984 John Lennon's "Borrowed Time" is released
1984 Philadelphia 76'ers block 20 Seattle shots tying NBA regulation game record
1984 Tim Witherspoon beats Greg Page in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1985 Laura Johnson (Falcon Crest) & Harry Hamlin (LA Law) wed
1986 16th Easter Seal Telethon raises $30,100,000
1986 Juli Inkster wins LPGA Women's Kemper Golf Open
1986 NASA announces searchers found remains of Challenger astronauts
1986 Soviet probe Vega 2 flies by Halley's Comet at 8,030 km
1987 Chrysler Corp offered to buy American Motors Corp for $1 billion
1988 President Reagan presides at unveiling of Knute Rockne stamp
1989 Eastern Airlines files for bankruptcy
1989 Roger Kingdom runs world record 60 meter hurdles indoor (7.36 seconds)
1989 Senate rejects Bush's nomination of John Tower as Defense Secretary
1989 Soviet Union officially submits to jurisdiction of the World Court
1989 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1990 Dr Antonia Novello sworn-in as 1st hispanic/female US surgeon general
1991 "Les Miserables" opens at Lyric Theatre, Brisbane
1991 5th American Comedy Awards: Dennis Wolfberg
1991 Joe Dumaars (Detroit MI) begins NBA free throw streak of 62 games
1991 US 70th manned space mission STS 39 (Discovery 12) launches into orbit
1993 19th People's Choice Awards
1993 7th Soul Train Music Awards
1993 Pittsburgh Penguins begin NHL record 17 game winning streak
1993 Rodney King in court says he thinks he heard cops yell racial slurs
1994 IRA launch 1st of 3 mortar attacks on London's Heathrow Airport
1995 Baseball awards a franchise to Tampa Bay Devil Rays
1995 Mexican peso worth 7.55 pesos to a dollar (record)
1995 President Konstantine Karamanlis (88) of Greece, resigns
1996 Javed Miandad's last international in Pakistan's WC QF loss to India
1996 Jayasuriya hammers 82 off 44 balls (13x4 3x6) vs England in WC QF
1996 STS 75 (Columbia 19), lands
1997 Senior Golf Slam
1997 Steve Elkington wins Doral-Ryder Golf Open

---

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Belize : Baron Bliss Day
Ukraine : Taras Shevchenko (Ukrainian poet) Day (1814)
World : Amerigo Vespucci Day (1451)
Memphis TN : Cotton Carnival (held for 5 days) - - - - - ( Tuesday )
New Mexico : Arbor Day - - - - - ( Friday )

---

Religious Observances
Anglican, Roman Catholic : Commemoration of Gregory, bishop of Nyssa
Roman Catholic : Memorial of St Frances of Rome, patron of motorists, housewives

---

Religious History
1839 Birth of Phoebe Palmer Knapp, American Methodist hymnwriter. She published more than 500 hymn tunes during her lifetime; her most famous melody comprises the tune to Fanny Crosby's hymn, "Blessed Assurance."
1843 Scottish clergyman Robert Murray McCheyne wrote in a letter: 'You will never find Jesus so precious as when the world is one vast howling wilderness. Then he is like a rose blooming in the midst of the desolation, a rock rising above the storm.'
1930 Pioneer linguist Frank Laubach wrote in a letter: 'It seems to me...that the very Bible cannot be read as a substitute for meeting God soul to soul and face to face.'
1931 The World Radio Missionary Fellowship (WRMF) was incorporated in Lima, Ohio, by co_founders Clarence W. Jones and Reuben Larson. Today, this interdenominational mission agency broadcasts the Gospel in 15 languages to South America and throughout Europe.
1965 Three white Unitarian ministers, including the Rev. James J. Reeb, were attacked with clubs on the streets of Selma, Alabama, while participating in a civil rights demonstration. Reeb later died in a Birmingham, Alabama hospital.

---

Thought for the day :
" If you always postpone pleasure you will never have it. "

[comwatch]

Dear friends:

A day of prayer is definitely in order...

Let us pray for our troops and their loved one here at home!

We must pray for our Commander in Chief as we watch other nations around the globe turning their back on America.  How many battle fields and lost American lives have they forgotten? Have they forgotten when America and her friends liberated those countries.  How many of us grew up without our fathers because they answered the call.

In the weeks ahead, here on the home front, our humble organization's mission will shift it's focus.  We've been joining with others in sending messages of encouragement and support for our troops.  When they engage the enemy, we must turn our support to their families here at home.  They will need to her from us.

We pray we do not need to wage war on the despot Saddam.  While the word waits, USO Canteen, Operation Military Support and countless others will write our service men and women.  On March 16th, we host a Rally for America here in Sacramento.  Those of you who live in Northern California, please spread the word.  We want our children to experience a sea of veterans being honored for their service.  If you are in a position to help us make that happen, please join our growing family:

It takes one mouse click here to make a difference and to be more involved. We need your help in spreading the word.  When you return to FReeper Foxhole, give some thought to joining the 200,000 Americans who are sending their prayers to President Bush, if you haven't already.

Support our Commander in Chief
Click Here to Send a Message Today

May God Bless you, your family and our nation.

[Non-Sequitur]

Yes that is an artist's recreation of the destruction of the Virginia. She was blown up by her crew when the confederates abandoned Norfolk.

[The Real Deal]

Thanks, I was wondering if it was an accident or done on purpose.

[Jen]

Good morning Real! Hope you're having a great day.

[larryjohnson]

Good mornin,FRoopers in foxholes.

[Soaring Feather]

bentfeather's Good News

YOUR LIFE RESPONDS TO YOUR OUTLOOK

Life is largely a matter of expectation.
If you want to succeed, you must expect to succeed.
So, set your goals high.
If you begin with some wild expectations
you'll succeed beyond your wildest expectations.

When you expect things to happen,
strangely enough, they do happen.
Expectation energizes your goals and give them momentum.
When you believe something good can happen, it will happen.

The dreams you believe in come to be.

Unknown

[SAMWolf]

Thnaks aomagrat, coming from FR's resident "Naval Expert" it means a lot.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Feather.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Real Deal. How's your mom doing?

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks for the complimenet, jwfiv.

PS. You don't have to call me Mister.

[SAMWolf]

Let me guess, you live in the North?

[SAMWolf]

1964 1st Ford Mustang produced

I loved the 64 Mustang.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks for the reminder,comwatch

[SAMWolf]

FRoopers, LOL! I sort of like it.

Morning Larry.

[SAMWolf]

Beautiful graphic Feather.