Description
HE DESIGNED THE U.S. NAVY’S IRONCLAD WARSHIP, USS MONITOR, THAT 3 DAYS AFTER COMPLETION WOULD BE INVOLVED IN THE FIRST BATTLE BETWEEN IRONCLAD WARSHIPS OF THE U.S. CIVIL WAR
JOHN ERICSSON (1803-89) SIGNED & COMPLETED CHECK, “John Ericsson”, 7.75 x 2.75, December 8, 1888, drawn on the Manhattan Company Bank, No. 40 Wall Street, pay to the order of D. Van Nostrand, $68.80, by the Swedish-American inventor who designed the United States Navy’s first screw-propelled steam-frigate, the USS Princeton, in partnership with Commodore Robert F. Stockton. And, in a new partnership built the first armored ironclad warship equipped with a rotating gun turret, USS Monitor.
In August 1861, Congress had recommended the construction of armored ships for the navy. Ericsson submitted a novel design for an armored ship with a rotating turret based on the Swedish lumber rafts of his birth nation. The USS Monitor was constructed in approximately one hundred days, an incredible achievement, and launched on March 6, 1862. Three days later, the USS Monitor confronted the CSS Virginia (the former USS Merrimack) at Hampton Roads, Virginia, in the first battle between ironclad warships. Although the battle ended as a tactical stalemate, the Monitor effectively checked the Virginia’s assault on the Union fleet. Dozens of additional monitors contributed to the success of the Union Navy for the remainder of the war. He continued to work on naval inventions, including a torpedo, a destroyer, and a torpedo boat, until his death. The check is mounted on a backing card and is in fine condition, with a few creases and minor age toning.
D. Van Nostrand was a publisher of standard works by American authors on military and scientific subjects. In 1869 they began the publication of Van Nostrand’s Engineering Magazine, a monthly journal.
$700 #12470
