The night the CSS Albemarle was lost

Kazziga

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Gliwice, Poland
A friend of mine wants to paint the scene of the Albemarle's final moments and he asked me to post his question here.
On the night she was torpedoed, it was raining off and on, sometimes hard. As her roof was mostly a grating, what stopped the rain from pouring in on the crew that slept aboard her? There must have been a makeshift awning (I know there were no stanchions constructed for her) or even a tarp spread out. Any suggestions?
 
My knee-jerk reaction is to say that Confederate sailors often were not quartered aboard their ironclads, but rather nearby on shore. But I'd have to look deeper into it to confirm or deny that in the specific case of the Albemarle. Your suggestion of a tarp/awning is logical.
 
I was just doing some reading about the CSS Shenandoah---the last Confederate surrender. Fascinating reading! It almost deserves a thread of it's own.
 
A friend of mine wants to paint the scene of the Albemarle's final moments and he asked me to post his question here.
On the night she was torpedoed, it was raining off and on, sometimes hard. As her roof was mostly a grating, what stopped the rain from pouring in on the crew that slept aboard her? There must have been a makeshift awning (I know there were no stanchions constructed for her) or even a tarp spread out. Any suggestions?
I was not aware of the weather during the attack.
Did Commander Cushing have any awnings protecting his picket boat ?

Photo210300.jpg

http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=56975
 
This photo was taken in Norfolk, Virginia. The Albemarle was raised by salvager Underwood and Company. She arrived at Gosport on 27 April 1865. Her upper armor had been removed prior to traveling through the North River Canal at Coinjock and she was towed through the canal to the shipyard by the USS Ceres.
 
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A friend of mine wants to paint the scene of the Albemarle's final moments and he asked me to post his question here.
On the night she was torpedoed, it was raining off and on, sometimes hard. As her roof was mostly a grating, what stopped the rain from pouring in on the crew that slept aboard her? There must have been a makeshift awning (I know there were no stanchions constructed for her) or even a tarp spread out. Any suggestions?
The Albemarle's casemate grating top was 46 feet long and 15 feet 6 inches wide. Men were apparently sleeping on board as one known casualty, Acting Master's Mate James Charles Hill, "sustained severe injuries when the hatchway fell upon him while he was asleep in his bunk as the [torpedo] explosion occurred" according to Bob Elliott. Bob wrote "Ironclad of the Roanoke". Flag Officer Lynch had ordered the awnings sent to Wilmington prior to her launching. I don't know if more awnings were added at a later date.
 
[QUOTE="Kazziga, post: ...As her roof was mostly a grating, what stopped the rain from pouring in on the crew that slept aboard her?[/QUOTE]
Albemarle was not mostly grating on the casemate. She had (3) 3 foot x 3 foot (roughly) ventilation grates, fore, aft, and midships (see photo below).
CSS%20Albemarle2_zps2x9yvjoo.jpg

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[QUOTE="Kazziga, post: ...As her roof was mostly a grating, what stopped the rain from pouring in on the crew that slept aboard her?
Albemarle was not mostly grating on the casemate. She had (3) 3 foot x 3 foot (roughly) ventilation grates, fore, aft, and midships (see photo below).
View attachment 137119
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In Record Group 19 of the National Archives, you can find the revised top and side plan of the CSS Albemarle, drawn by W. E. Geoghegan. Note the grating on top of the casemate. There are three hatches: fore, aft, and on top of the casemate. Note the writing over the smokestack: "grating - 2" x 6" iron, 2" apart".
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The Albemarle's casemate grating top was 46 feet long and 15 feet 6 inches wide. Men were apparently sleeping on board as one known casualty, Acting Master's Mate James Charles Hill, "sustained severe injuries when the hatchway fell upon him while he was asleep in his bunk as the [torpedo] explosion occurred" according to Bob Elliott. Bob wrote "Ironclad of the Roanoke". Flag Officer Lynch had ordered the awnings sent to Wilmington prior to her launching. I don't know if more awnings were added at a later date.
Porter's plan located the crew quarters forward below the gun deck near the magazine. The night she was blow up, some were sleeping on the gun deck instead, probably due to the heat below decks, even though it was raining off and on. One sleeping crewman was hit by a falling hatch cover after the explosion.
 
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