the status of african-americans, particularly in the south, ticking the same cotton they had picked under slavery and living the same lines are very similar they had lived under slavery, he wondered what was gained by the emancipation proclamation and what was gained by that bloody war. the 150thmemorating anniversary of the civil war this year and for the next four years. it is important that we honor those who gave their lives for their respective causes, but it would have been a greater tribute to our nation had they lived. we go now to the mariners of the ussa tour monitor, the first ironclad warship commissioned by the u.s. navy.

>> one of the things we're best known for is the uss monitor center. that is something we have done in partnership with the national oceanic and atmospheric association, and it really tells of the uss ironclad monitor that went on to fight the merrimack, otherwise known as the css virginia, in the first battle of ironclad vessels. that happened in 1860 two and this is a fitting place for the center. was built inor response to the growing confederate threat here. begins at or see was building an iron -- the confederacy was building an ironclad vessel. the whole purpose behind the virginia was to break the union blockade here in hampton.

it was an arms race. virginia was growing here in hampton. the monitor was being built in foundries all over the northeast, assembled in brooklyn and headed here to try to stop virginia in her tracks. but she arrived one day late. 8, 1862, the virginia came out to the hampton roseann and in very short order cut down the union fleet made up of -- hampton, and in very short order cut down the union fleet. the monitor arrived that evening to help save the union blockade, and in fact the next morning the monitor went into battle with the virginia and the rest, as they say, is history. first battle of ironclad warships, and it really did change naval architecture and naval warfare forever from that day forward. the uss monitor spent most of her life here along the james

river. however, in late 1862, she was ordered south to beaufort, north carolina, and then presumably on down to charleston. that meant she had to make a treacherous passage around cape hatteras. the early morning hours of december 31, 18 62, she lost her battle, not with another vessel, not with the enemy, but with the elements. she did sink 16 miles off cape hatteras, in about 240 feet of him men on board with her. this tells the story not just of the monitor but of the monitor of virginia, the arms race between a union and the confederacy, as well as the story of the people, the people who built the vessels and the people who served in the vessels. we have several theaters that deal with the battle itself, the battle of hampton roads march 8 and march ninth of 1862.

we have immersive environments. you can walk into the gun deck of the uss virginia and inside that you will see the gun decks of the men who served. we have some of the archaeological elements that have been brought up from the wreck of the uss monitor. we have a full-scale replica that you can walk on board to get a feel for the size of this vessel. with a revolving gun tour it in the middle. it is hard to get a sense of pictures, sos and we put you right on board, and that is one of the highlights of this exhibition. this is not just annex addition. it is also a state-of-the-art an -- this is not just exhibition. it is a state-of-the-art conservation lab. we have a rotating gun tour it, a steam engine, a condenser, and we have the two guns he read about in elementary school, the guns that fought in the battle of hampton. undergoingl

conservation and they are all on public view. >> we're standing here in the large wet lab at the mariners museum in newport news, virginia. what we do at the conversation facility is take objects there were once in a marina buyer men underneath the water and extract salt and stabilize objects to put -- in marineena -- in a environment and we extract salt and stabilize objects to put them on display. this was the first revolving gun tour it on a ship in history. see is in the large tank we behind us. it is currently undergoing a electrochemical treatment to and corrosion products from the surface of the object. the on that is the monitor's main engine.

that is the monitor's main engine. is a vibrating side lever steam engine. in the front tank below is a condenser that collected i exhausted steam and converted it back to water that could either be pumped into the ocean or reused. knowing this project could take a couple of decades, one of our initial thoughts was how can we best show the public and teach them the conservation process. early on, when we built the facility, we had large windows that the public could look through and see the process going on. we made this part of our daily work. we have online access so people can go on the museum's website and see the cameras off in the

distance. here and look online. we have an online blog as well as within the museum we tried to tell the conservation side of the story. is to putte goal objects here on display so they shipsart telling the story and telling the history component. we are currently in once called the clean lab that you would expect in a normal conservation lab. is where final treatment of artifacts are carried out. chemical coatings, constructing support mounts for objects, doing a cleaning in a dry and stable environment. when it comes to a personal connection and a human connection, you cannot get much closer than actual, personal items. is actuale looking at artifacts in association with the sale. of shoesatched pair

was found on the sailors. why? .e can speculate was he coming out of his bunk and through on whatever shoes he had? this is the lower half of a wellington. why are they mismatched? there must've been some kind of struggle at that point. you are at the moment of desperation, trying to get out. we have parts of socks and other forms of clothing. closer to theven , actual belongings that we know where they came from. this is a span that has the initial jn on it, which we know stands for jacob nicholas, who was a crew member who died. we can make a direct, personal story, this was his object. whos one of the crewmembers

could be the remains of. it is a direct connection to an individual. even closer than that is this .ing they were hoping when they removed it that it would have some kind of initial or some kind of name, but still we don't know. monitor theetive areum and other groups trying to find who they were. no inscription. it's one of those stories where you get so close to feeling who are these people what do we know, and we still don't know, so it is still part of that story of trying to figure out who they were and really make a direct, personal connection with objects like this. such a small thing.

it is just a ring, but the connotation and story behind it are almost bigger than the target. it -- turret. there is nothing more personal than a ring. what is the meaning behind it? it's sort of hidden away in here. so, along with specific personal items, we have other closely contents,ings, pocket coins. we found a key. the question is what it opened? is it a family keepsake? is it from a pox on the ship, we really don't know. ,t's one of those cliché things the key to a whole story we may never know, but we have the object. and we knowthing

where it was located, but the personal story is not with it. leads to questions about where it came from, what it's for, all that sort of mystery that will stay with the ship and her crew. other items like this pencil. that was a hand used item that somebody used on the ship. we have navy buttons that were recovered. time, say goodyear on them. differente are so from back then. things change, but yet, that modern connection as well. even though this object is 150 years old, it is still touching lives today. and we have components like

instrumentation from the engine assembly. this is actually the plate that directions, stop and right to left. plate they were using. they have that artifact. although it is one small piece, it adds to the big story. you can kind of think of it as a giant puzzle. adds one more piece to the bigger picture. we can add to the story. that is what so important about conserving and studying objects. they are giving us more about story, trying to build the picture of the lives of the crew and that time as well. the battle of hampton roads is

the first battle between two ironclad vessels. it changed warfare forever. on march 8, the ridge in your esteemed out -- the virginia steamed out and laid waste in the worst naval loss until pearl harbor. almosth 9, they spent four hours pounding each other and almost point-blank range, and neither ship seriously crippled the other one. whennlike the day before iron went against wood, if approved would was obsolete. she battle of the ironclad ship is the birth of the modern navy. when you go out and look at any , use either wisconsin or the misery, they have a gun tank on them. the one on this is the first one ever on a ship. that's why it's so important.

history, its world history. its culture history. it is the story of the crew and the struggles. slaves. a whole bunch of different angles of not only civil war history but world history as well. >> next friday night, c-span examines the history of the civil rights movement with a tour of the met gregor's house -- of metzger evers