In Brief

Monitoring the Monitor

The great ironclad USS Monitor sank into the Atlantic 140 years ago—and the Navy still wants to recover it. The ship sank about nine months after its famous battle with the Confederate ironclad CSS Virginia (also known as the Merrimac). Duke University marine archaeologists discovered the Monitor's remains in 1971. Navy divers are preparing to retrieve the ship's gun turret, and they expect to find human remains in the process and hope to make identification. "The turret was the only way out and all the other hatches were sealed tight," said John Broadwater, manager of the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary. The turret's recovery is a major part of an ongoing campaign. The Monitor's engine was lifted last summer—at a cost of $4.3 million. Previous dives brought back items like the anchor, propeller, some glass bottles, and cannon balls.