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NOAA and NAVY BRING TURRET OF USS MONITOR TO SHORE
World’s Most Famous Artifact from Civil War Ironclad Reaches U.S. Shores

August 9, 2002 — For the first time in 140 years, the long submerged revolving gun turret, the most recognizable aspect of the USS Monitor, returned to U.S. soil and will arrive at its final resting place at The Mariners’ Museum in Newport News, Va., Saturday. Officials from NOAA, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy and The Mariners’ Museum welcomed home this important piece of American history during a ceremony Friday at the Herbert Bateman Carrier Integration Center in Newport News, Va. (Click NOAA photo for larger view of USS Monitor turret after it was brought onboard the Derrick Barge Wotan on August 5, 2002. Click here to view high resolution version. Please note that this is a large file. Please credit "NOAA.") [Click here to see more photos.]

— You can follow the expedition's history, see the latest photos and read daily logs.

NOAA's Monitor National Marine Sanctuary

NOAA's National Ocean Service

NOAA's National Marine Sanctuary Program

Media Contact:
David Hall, NOAA, (757) 254-4044 or (202) 329-5827
(Photos courtesy of NOAA's LTJG Jeremy Weirich of the NOAA Corps.)