In 1864 a pair of unfinished Confederate ironclads sat at Rainbow Bluff waiting to be finished out. One was the "Weldon Gun Battery" and the other was ordered by Confederate secritary of Navy to be ready by 1865 as an "improved Albemarle" type ship. Intruth, this second ship was neither bult by the builder of the Albemarle nor was the construction method the same as used on the CSS Albemarle. But the designation stuck, giving moder researchers big headaches.
The un-named ship, probebly designed by J.L. Porter, had started life at Tarborough, NC, by an unknown contractor before moving to Rainbow Bluff to receive armor and guns. The weather deck extend out over the hull by two feet and the space filled in to give a belt of protection against ramming and torpedoes. The 153 foot long vessel had a casemate protected by a 30 degree slope and four inches of armor.
In the end time ran out and the ship was burned, but not before a Union officer mad sketches of the ship. Many thanks to John Wallis for bringing this to my attention. My paper model will be available in full hull and waterline versions. The scale is 1/250.
CT
The un-named ship, probebly designed by J.L. Porter, had started life at Tarborough, NC, by an unknown contractor before moving to Rainbow Bluff to receive armor and guns. The weather deck extend out over the hull by two feet and the space filled in to give a belt of protection against ramming and torpedoes. The 153 foot long vessel had a casemate protected by a 30 degree slope and four inches of armor.
In the end time ran out and the ship was burned, but not before a Union officer mad sketches of the ship. Many thanks to John Wallis for bringing this to my attention. My paper model will be available in full hull and waterline versions. The scale is 1/250.
CT
