Puritan I

Puritan


I
(Mon: t. 3,265; 1. 351'0"; b. 50'0"; dr. 20'0"; a. 2 15" D.sb.;
cl. Puritan)

Originally designed as a double-turreted ironclad monitor the plans were altered to the specifications of John Ericsson Puritan's builder, following a long debate with the Navy, she was built with a single turret. Contraeted 28 July 1862 to Ericsson, who in turn subeontraeted the hull to Continental Iron Works of Greenpoint, N.Y. and the machinery to Allaire Works of New York, N.Y., she was launched 2 July 1864. However, due to delays in construction and the casting of the 15-inch smoothbores she was never completed, her construction being suspended in 1865.

During the years following the war, Puritan along with several other monitors suffered extensive deterioration with their combat value likewise decreasing. In 1874-75 Secretary of the Navy George Robeson decided to carry out extensive repairs on Puritan and four monitors of the Miantonomoh class. Funds were not appropriated for new construction, but the condition of the ship's hulls particularly, necessitated building essentially new ships, bearing no real resemblance to the originals. A scandal resulted when the fact came to light that Robeson was paying for new ships with the old ones. As a result, the first Puritan was turned over to John Roach of Chestcr, Pa. as partial payment for the " unauthorized" construction of the second Puritan: the name was not changed on the Navy List due to belief that the "repaired" vessel was still the Civil War monitor.