Seven New Ironclads

James B. Eads

Today the construction of seven new ironclads was approved by the United States government. Ironclads remained a relatively new force in naval technology. They had seen limited service in Europe, and had proven to be useful there. Both North and South were working on ironclads for the Virginia theater, the Monitor and the Virginia respectively, but these new ships were intended for service on the Mississippi river. The boats were later named the Cairo, Carondelet, Cincinnati, Louisville, Mound City, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis. These boats were funded by James B. Eads, an American inventor. They were all of the same design, and were called Pook's Turtles after their builder and appearance. They were originally quoted at $90,000 per vessel, but the cost ended up being double that. Eads paid for them out of his own pocket, and they went into action before he was reimbursed by the federal government. These ships would be very important in the naval battles on the Mississippi river.

USS Cairo

USS Mound City