CSS Albermarle  "A Warship Built Of Scrap"  April 17 - October 28, 1864
 
 The fact that the ironclad casemate ram CSS Albermarle was built at all is a tribute to the ingenuity and determination of her contractors and the Confederate navy. She was manned for Albermarle Sound inside North Carolina's Outer Banks, a region that had been under federal control for two years, and she was designed and built for the mission of regaining that area for the Confederacy.

The Albermarle was constructed in a cornfield near Edward's Ferry on the Roanoke River, 30 winding miles up the river from its namesake sound. Hampered by a lack of materials and the primitive tools used by local carpenters and blacksmiths, construction took a year. "The country was ransacked for miles around for bolts, bars and metal in every form", reported one observer. This scrap was hammered together to make the four-inch-thick armor on the 60-foot octagonal casemate. The Albermarle was 152 feet long and 34 feet across, and being designed for the shallow coastal water, drew only eight feet of water. Her solid-oak tapered prow, sheathed in two inches of iron, was designed to stab like a knife into the sides of wooden Union warships. Two 200-horsepower engines and two propellers powered the ship, and the two 100-pounder rifled cannon could each be fired in three directions. "You must not expect too much of the Albermarle for she is the poorest ironclad in the Confederacy", wrote one of her crew members.

In spite of her humble beginning, the Albermarle was a serious threat to Union warships in Albermarle and neighboring sounds. Because ironclad Union ships could not pass through the shallow inlets piercing the barrier islands, the Albermarle's opponents were all lightweight steamers without protective armor. Commissioned on April 17, 1864, the Albermarle set off to participate in a joint operation with Rebel infantry to recapture Plymouth, a Union-held town near the mouth of the Roanoke River.

Fascinating Fact:  The rapid current in the Roanoke River, along with its tight twists and turns, made it difficult to steer the Albermarle. Consequently, she traveled down the river stern first, dragging heavy chains from her bow to make her more manageable.


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