Tour The USS Cairo, a Surviving Civil War Ironclad: Vicksburg 160

Vicksburg National Military Park can make a claim that no other battlefield park can . . . they have a Civil War era ironclad. The USS Cairo spent over 100 years at the bottom of the Yazoo River before being located and raised in the 1960s. Special Guest Dr. Tim Smith is with Kris White and Chris Mackowski for a tour of the famous gunboat. #VicksburgTour
This video is part of our commemoration of the 160th Anniversary of the Vicksburg Campaign. Videos will be added from now until the beginning of July. To view the full set of tours, visit: • Vicksburg Campaign: 16...
The American Battlefield Trust preserves America’s hallowed battlegrounds and educates the public about what happened there and why it matters. We permanently protect these battlefields for future generations as a lasting and tangible memorial to the brave soldiers who fought in the American Revolution, the War of 1812, and the Civil War.

[@bengilbert5610]

This vessel was almost completely intact when it was discovered in the 1960's (nothing like the skeleton you see now). It was torn to pieces by the recovery effort. The parts of the vessel that were recovered then went years with no conservation. The salvage of the USS Cairo is known as one of the worst examples of maritime archaeology. What is displayed at Vicksburg is fascinating, but it could have been so much more.

[@aidanacebo9529]

my thoughts exactly when I visited her a few years ago.

[@kencreppin2146]

Botched recovery so why not get someone who mispronounces the name. Really????

[@chuckcts-v3460]

@@kencreppin2146 It is named for the city of Cairo, Il. The way they are pronouncing it, is the "correct" way to say this name.

[@kencreppin2146]

@@chuckcts-v3460 I'll call Egypt to let them know they've been pronouncing it wrong for over 1,000 years.....

[@Christoph-sd3zi]

​@@kencreppin2146I went to school at SIU Carbondale - it's a regional pronunciation of "Cairo"

[@OcotilloTom]

I was about 14 when they raised the Cairo. I lived in Monroe, Louisiana 80 miles away. The progress was a news story every night on our local TV channel 8. I had an ancestor that was killed at Vicksburg, Jehu Boyte 9th Texas Cavalry, and one who was wounded and captured at Champions Hill just south of Vicksburg. Hugh Boyte, Co. "H", 33rd Mississippi Infantry. He was hospitalized in Yazoo City, MS, then paroled. He went right back and joined his unit as soon as he was well enough.

[@jamesholland270]

The USS Cairo was 175 ft. 512 ton displacement (102,400!bs). But it only had a 6ft draft, fully crewed and stocked. It was said that the city class ships could sail on a heavy dew.

[@retromotors383]

As a young man, I was attending a shipfitting school in Pascagoula, Mississippi, adjacent to the big shipyard there. We shut down for a weekend, only to find on Monday that the parking lot was half filled with a massive pile of busted-up timbers being constantly sprinkled with water. Come to find out it was the remains of the Cairo, just raised from the river. I have never seen the ship since it' been displayed at Vicksburg. I'm only a couple hours away, so it's definitely on my bucket list!

[@joijaxx]

I read your comment without glasses on and thought you wrote shoplifting LOL.

[@JamesJones-cx5pk]

Im born and raised outside Vicksburg. You probably need 3 days to properly see the whole National Park.

[@wes326]

My Grandmother was a ship welder in Pasagoula in WWII.

[@Revolver1701]

How awesome is that! It’s on my bucket list too.

[@Christoph-sd3zi]

So many buckets!

[@roberthurley1685]

I had the great fortune to see Ed Bearss present a lecture on the Cairo recovery, fascinating story and a great evening with one of the most unique scholars of the War

[@victoriachase9550]

Im truly obsessed with learning about the civil war

[@edgallagher7097]

Me too as it is so intriguing

[@badcornflakes6374]

Biggest war in the Americas

[@oceantree5000]

It’d be a dream come true for this Kentucky boy living way out in Oregon to see the Cairo, not to mention the rest of Vicksburg.

[@rdhunkins]

Went to Vicksburg last weekend. Enjoyed it lot, but was disappointed that U.S.S. Cairo was closed. So was Grant’s HQ. Nice to get this view of the ship.

[@springerk2007]

Me too ☹️ Looks like I’m gonna have to make another trip!

[@charlesdbruce]

I saw this a few years ago - what a great little museum! Also, the graphic at the Vicksburg visitors center of the campaign is probably one of the best graphical renderings of a campaign I've ever seen. Truly excellent. Not a movie, but a graphical rendering showing how the various armies moved using sound effects, lighting, etc. all on a static map. Really well done.

[@garyparris1713]

I visited the site at least 2 times and I still amazed at the determination and the strength that it took!!!!!!!!

[@richardgilmore2992]

I was able to go there only once. It was something to watch. If I remember right some of the first parts such as the wheel house was at the Sprague paddle and I was able to see it up real close. L

[@taasen58]

Strange fact : Selfridge the commander of the Cairo was an uncle to Thomas O. Selfridge the very first victim of a motorized flight vehicle accident in 1908 when Orville Wright took him on a demonstration of the “ Wright Flyer” in an attempt to get the U.S. Army interest in purchasing a few planes for what was to be the U.S.Air Force. He actually flew right over the sight of his eventual burial plot as they made several circuits over Arlington National Cemetery before crashing the aircraft resulting in a fatal skull fracture that took his life, he died three days later.

[@jasontaylor7403]

Had the pleasure to visit the Cairo this spring. Have also toured the Monitor and next week traveling to Charles and going to visit the HL Huntley!

[@TubeRadiosRule]

It's "Hunley", actually...

[@cathleen6104]

These ironclads were amazing. My ancestor was a crewman on the St. Louis/Baron de Kalb from Fort Donelson to Vicksburg and beyond. The wheel house was blown up at Donelson and my ancestor took a piece of tackle to the belly. A year or so later with the Chillicothe, the Baron De Kalb faced Confederate cannons on the Yazoo cut through. The Chillicothe, a second generation gun boat, was splintered to pieces while the Baron de Kalb sat right next to the Chillicothe and came out unscathed because the Confederate artillery was having fun tearing the other boat up. Like the Cairo, the BdK was sunk by a torpedo 2 months later on the Yazoo about a 1/2 mile downriver from Yazoo City but never raised.

[@terryeustice5399]

Thanks for the tour of the Ciaro. Very interesting. Thank you Kris and Chris and Mr. Smith for video and documentary. On the sinking and raising of this boat.

[@jimrutherford2773]

I've seen it in person and was awestruck as to how great the presentation was.

[@jorgemartinpaez4376]

Im wanting to go there and visit The USS CAIRO, getting excited!

[@tomdynia9951]

I've seen the Cairo a couple of times. A great exhibit and a fascinating museum. It would be worth visiting even without the battlefield itself.

[@richardhenry1969]

I didn’t know any iron clads were ever found. I used to dream about them as a kid. My grandfather said all were scuttled. I love the civil war history. Used to live in Gettysburg. Thank you for sharing this. Now I must visit it myself.

[@thearmoredgeorgian2736]

Most ironclads that are left, are confederate. They scuttled them in the Rivers so the union wouldn’t capture them. The union scrapped most of theirs, so there isn’t many of them left, even as wrecks.

[@darwinhall8550]

I visited this ship and the museum several years ago and was amazed at the effort that was made to preserve this unique vessel. This is a very good video, thank you for sharing. The only thing I would add is that there were 3 navies in the Civil War, a blue water navy for the open ocean, a green water navy for coastal waters, and a brown water navy for inland rivers. An excellent place to learn more about the navies in the Civil War is the National Civil War Naval Museum in Columbus, GA.

[@Rudeljaeger]

Lol "effort". The effort the preserve the few pieces of timber thst survive after they destroyed the completly preserved ship? The Cairo was almost undamagdd in the mud. The chucklefucks then destroyed her.

[@vickyd4966]

According to my 3rd great grandfather's military papers. After he was captured (confederate) he was transported to Camp Douglas via the Cairo. I got to come to Vicksburg and see it.

[@dorianleclair7390]

Man I need to check these out. So cool

[@bobreaderman5542]

As usual, a terrific presentation. Thanks.

[@garkmr6200]

Awesome video. Thank you so much. I’ll probably never get to visit some of these sites, but I feel like I was there with you.

[@hfdole]

Going down the Pascagoula river has a kid I recall seeing this thing just before the shipyard with sprinklers keeping the wood wet.

[@robertf3479]

Commander Selfridge proved true an age-old Navy adage, "Any ship can be a minesweeper ... once."

[@NjK601]

That was great, you guys are like The Julian Bashir, and Miles O'brien of history (for The Star Trek DS9 fans out there)

[@subjectc7505]

I remember visiting this place, it was cool actually getting to see and stand in an ironclad.

[@k.c.8658]

One of Ed Bearss’ many achievements.

[@stretmediq]

I had a cousin who lived in Vicksburg who worked at the Corps of Engineers river research facility and I've been all over the battle site and have seen the Cairo up close many times

[@ianblake815]

This is one of the best channels on KZbin! 🇺🇸💯

[@LABoyko]

As Civil War artifacts go, this one is tough to top.

[@SergeiMosin]

The word "surviving" invites something of a ship of Theseus debate with the Cairo, but it is absolutely a fascinating piece of history. I would love to see a museum or even a private enterprise take the time to build a functional replica of an ironclad and offer historical sailing trips down the rivers similar to how they do the paddle steamers.

[@agentmueller]

Although it’s not sailing, there’s a fully 1:1 confederate ironclad in SC I believe that you can tour, and the real ship (or the remains like this) with all the artifacts are in the museum adjacent. There’s videos of it on here.

[@SergeiMosin]

@@agentmueller I think I remember the one in SC... or maybe I'm thinking of the Cairo, it's been about a decade since I was on whichever ship it was, so my memory is hazy at best. They really are a fascinating piece of naval history, especially when considered alongside the contemporary weapons they would've faced off against. The first time anyone saw an ironclad coming at them must have been absolutely horrifying.

[@missmissy2490]

Fascinating! Thank you!

[@historyadventureswithcandi3497]

These are amazing to watch and learn. Cant believe its been 160 Years since the Battle of Gettysburg.

[@rogertrent9842]

Would love to visit that museum in Vicksburg... Thank you, guys, for all the very enjoyable US history stories.

[@crippledcrow2384]

The museum is great. It has a lot of personal items, uniforms, caps, lots of items you won't find anywhere else.

[@1300zagato]

The modern framework is a thing of beauty on its own. Amazing exhibit thank you for sharing.

[@emmabaylis]

This vessel is an amazing eye opener ! Amazing engineering! Great video guys! I also love the deep details in this

[@JasonAlexander-uz4ns]

Such good a presentation thanks guys for your videos

[@davekreitzer4358]

Great job , excellent video , interesting history , I like it !!! 👍😎

[@brettoberry3586]

I visited this site in July of 1990. It was right after I graduated from NATTC Millington, TN. Absolutely fascinating!

[@stimannzz]

God bless all the people working to preserve artifacts from the past and the people devoting their time to research history and share it with all.

[@Vinny_TheCableGuy]

My great so on grandfather was on the CSS Arkansas. Its cool to read about his time in Vicksburg and his capture and eventual release.

[@davidkimmel4216]

Wonderful

[@timisfree1768]

Outstanding preservation and presentation!

[@johnimhof6568]

Fantastic

[@i-a-g-r-e-e-----f-----jo--b]

What a great museum, amazing. Thanks for the great video. I watched this video recently, there is a lost city in the USA now in 2023 called Cairo, Illinois, almost abandoned town.

[@jorgemartinpaez4376]

The USS CAIRO one of the 100 day gunboats of the River navies! amazing!

[@jefftack3461]

Great job guys! Engaging presentation on a new subject for this civil war freak.

[@markleach116]

Always enjoy the Kris and Chris show 🤣

[@HistorySavior1941]

I wish the Cario would have been open when I was there. Vicksburg is by far one of the best preserved battlefields in the country. I love this place as much as Gary 😂

[@lynnmitzy1643]

I saw the Hunley. I love civil war history. Thx cA💪🏼😎

[@nflbetteroldstyle]

What a great video!

[@ironcladalibi]

Not mentioned in the video is the USS Cairo was purchased by the US Army, being commissioned on 25 January 1862, and later transferred to the US Navy Navy on 1 October 1862. Ed Bearss titled his talk on raising the Cairo "How Not to Raise a Civil War Ironclad."

[@gregbiggs5674]

Samuel Pook designed the City Class ships - hence their nickname the Pook Turtles. James Eads built them - four in Carondolet, MO and three at Mound City, IL. The Cairo was built at Mound City along with the USS Mound City and USS Cincinatti.

[@kenstrayhorn5923]

The remains of the iron-clad ram CSS Neuse was scuttled as the war ended near Kinston, NC. In the 60s the state funded a search for the remains and eventually found them. They could have asked any of the local fishermen who knew the spot as "gunboat bend" as they were constantly losing lures hooked on the wreck. The keel and some planking are on display at a park in Kinston near the river. The timbers still smell of smoke. N.B. I am a financial supporter of the Battlefield Trust. You should be to. If you are a North Carolinian their latest effort is to preserve the land where the Battle of Wyse Fork took place. If we don't save that land it will soon be covered by the cardboard condos springing up across the state.

[@genebryant3333]

Would be interested in seeing one of the guns with all ropes and rigging used to fire it onboard. Maybe a presentation on why such elaborate rigging was needed. Wonderful how you can tell they're really into the history.

[@frankwurth5375]

Yes, in southern Ill the name of the town is always pronounced Kay-ro. Goes back to the southern accent of the times. We have been to see the museum and the boat, while its great how it's been assembled, the so called recovery was nothing short of a total destruction of the ship! They have recovered just a fraction of the originally intact ship. Much of the remains are still in the mud. The engineers in 1960s never even considered how to recover it intact, they just wanted to bring up a few remnants and to them that was good enough. I love how they placed the canopy over the exhibit, not only preserves it from the elements, but makes it a year around exhibit.

[@patricksanders858]

My ancestor was a Union Lieutenant working with Colored Troops trying to dig a canal across the oxbow that Vicksburg rits at. It didn't work out but there's a park there now.

[@kevinakling]

You guys should come down to Ft McAllister in Dec for the annual muster. Beautiful in December…

[@smplyizzy]

Where did most of the iron cladding go?

[@craiggleason8386]

I wondered the same

[@craiggleason8386]

I believe it deteriorated significantly after being raised. Even after being place here they had problems with birds roosting in the shelter and pooping on the ship causing damage

[@smplyizzy]

@@craiggleason8386 Thank you for responding. Strange that some of the original wood has survived and the iron has not.

[@dirtfarmer7070]

No doubt that much of it was salvaged during the world wars .locals that were aware of these wrecks would take whatever they could reach.

[@redjacc7581]

cool stuff.

[@fox.9879]

3:56 had me for a second there

[@bicknell67]

Great job guys very informative as someone who loves all things history especially historical ships this is for me. I would love to visit this museum one day. I like the tent setup but to protect from birds nests and dust would it be possible for a building to be constructed around the vessel?

[@PRCoolBreeze]

Behind the scenes dialog.........."Somebody get Tim a Trust hat and have him take off the darn Ole Miss one please."

[@chrismoody1342]

Bit of a history buff and have visited Vicksburg. Toured the battlefield, the national cemetery and the Cairo. The siege of Vicksburg was brutal for those under the siege. They were starved out for months and months on end with no supplies.

[@PercyPruneMHDOIFandBars]

That's the nature of seige warfare! At least they didn't throw dead animals and disease diseased bodies in.

[@jamesbrunner6377]

I visited Vicksburg on Memorial day and unfortunately the Cairo was closed. Man I wish it had been opened. I did cross the tape and got some pictures that the tarp didn't cover.

[@westonadams7135]

8:03 haha the look the tour guide gave the camera man

[@wpeale71341]

I first saw this restoration back in the 70's. Now I am in my 50's and it is only about halfway. I believe it will never get completed during my lifetime as it looks like it might take 200 years to complete at this rate.

[@keithtanner2806]

We visited the Battlefield and the Cairo around 20yrs ago. At the time I recall almost everything painted black. This timber “skeleton” wasn’t evident.There was no access onto the boat at the time.

[@craiggleason8386]

On mud river in Memphis there is a full size replica of a city class ironclad gun deck.

[@PercyPruneMHDOIFandBars]

Just a quick thought here. This is fascinating. However, it's difficult to determine what is protective exoskeleton and what is actual USE Cairo. Would it be an idea to colour the supports so that a better idea of what this piece of history looks like? I love this preservation though. Should I ever get the chance to visit the US, (it'll have to be for quite a while! Lol) this is one of the places on my bucket list.

[@averdadeestalafora.2578]

Amazing, navy Brazil 🇧🇷 have a monitor ship. Navigating the Amazon River. In the active navy of Brazil 🇧🇷.

[@raymondclark1785]

Russia had a monitor in the Zar's Navy. It went down in a storm off Estonia and stuck its bow in the bottom and is still standing on its nose. Interesting dive

[@timfrye3586]

Wonderful! Love the Cairo and Vicksburg!

[@jorgemartinpaez4376]

Edwin Bearss, an Acclaimed Historian was part of this salvage and restoration! He stated we don't know a battlefield until we/ you walk it, and live it?

[@robosledger5158]

Awesome video. Thanks so much. Are the railroad rails, and cladding including the pilot house cladding original?

[@jamesholland270]

Yes. They were salvaged from the wreck site in the Yazoo river.

[@robosledger5158]

@@jamesholland270 Thanks. That’s something to see.

[@Starfleet8555]

Curious was vessel equipped with Teak to back the Iron plate? I ask this because the ironclad HMS Warrior does utilizes Teak and was Commissioned a similar time. I do understand the Warrior is a completely different ship that is designed for something completely different. The Warrior is an ocean going Vessel, while the Cairo is more of a riverine Vessel.

[@danielburke8350]

After watching this video I started thinking about planning a visit to Vicksburg, but was disappointed to see that the NPS website says the Cairo museum is "temporarily closed." Does anyone know anything about when it's expected to reopen?

[@Mn66stew]

You mentioned that the guns could be elevated for shore bombardment. Is there a gun shown in that position? How many shots were these guns capable of? What were they made of? Is this covered at the museum or do I need to read a scholarly work?

[@ronauvil5118]

The designers of the famous WW2 T-34 tank had 'discovered' sloped armor. Hmmm they must have seen pictures of the USS Cairo.

[@waynesanchez6504]

No....actually SLOPING, as a defense against incoming cannon balls, goes back to the design and construction of MEDIEVEL FORTS.

[@badcornflakes6374]

​@@waynesanchez6504They didn't say anything about anything being first... Comparison is the thief of joy my friend.

[@AutodidactEngineer]

This looks like one of those gold filled ships in the movie Sahara

[@Odin029]

Clearing mines with the bow of your ship is the same as a boxer blocking punches with their face. It's effective, but only for a really short while.

[@raymondclark1785]

My father was on a minesweeper during WWII and said: Any ship can be a minesweeper once!

[@bigsarge2085]

✌️✌️

[@RuralTowner]

Easy to forget that just like WW1 which is easily assumed to have been just the endless trenches & moonscape between them in Europe...the US Civil War was far more than just the well known land battles & the very historically significant Ironclad duel @ Hampton Roads.

[@crippledcrow2384]

They didn't mention the smell of the old ship. They said it was still drying out? It had a definite funk to it.

[@VitalityMassage]

5:40 It's supposed to go up the yazoo.

[@barryallenporter8127]

I'm curious what happened to the rest of the armor. Is it still lost in the mud?

[@grayharker6271]

Recovery of the Arkansas would have been a greater achievement. The Arkansas actually ran the union blockade at Vicksburg!

[@t.texastimmy1022]

Many of the State Monuments inside the Vicksburg (Battleground) National Military Park are in urgent need of repairs. Who is responsible for the maintenance and how can we make these repairs happen???

[@Pyjamarama11]

you'll find the term 'bridge' originates a few dozen centuries earlier than you think

[@scottjuhnke6825]

Last time I was at Vicksburg, they had put a road across the trenchline leading up to the great redoubt. Beyond stupid.

[@tonyk1584]

where did the crew sleep?

[@kellyschram5486]

Your the only one I have ever heard call her that. What do you call the city in Egypt. Do you call it that?

[@JustJohn505]

i wonder what other clads are lurking in the mud

[@Pthumerian01]

Named my ship in Star Trek Online after this ship

[@vernonfarrior3894]

The other gentlemen was my Grandfather Donald Jacks.

[@grayharker6271]

At the same time they were raising the Ciro, there was a big revisionist narrative going on in the south. One was raising the CSS Ram Neuse in Kinston NC. I remember all the hoopla around a ship that was never finished or floated!

[@roymonaghan5765]

It seems to be part of a standard for folks who believe in making glorious those shady things from the past...or indeed the present.

[@randymagnum143]

​@@roymonaghan5765are you talking about the technology, or theology?

[@roymonaghan5765]

@@randymagnum143 Could apply to either I suppose. There seems to be a lot of folks who try to paint a picture of some things in the past as being about good things when in reality it wasn't such. You also have other folks now painting pictures of what they advocate in politics as being good and wholesome but that not being so much the case. It applies to both sides of politics at the end of the day. No politician can ever really be trusted.

[@randymagnum143]

@@roymonaghan5765 ya got me there. I just find it irritating that the technology and tactics are now being denigrated by people who look at history's reality through the lens of today's morality.

[@williampaz2092]

The Pilot House of these River Ironclads were called “The Texas” by their crews, nobody today knows why. The iron plating on The Texas was very thin; well trained Confederate Gunners could turn the Pilot Houses into a slaughterhouse with well placed shots.

[@ladyponfarr5479]

The 2 Chris don't really like each other. They are always taking shots at each other.

[@Revolver1701]

Good video. And you pronounced “Kay-ro” correctly.

[@BigMrFirebird]

Why is it pronounced Kayro rather than that of the Egyptian capital?

[@gmlogan4889]

Named after the town of Cairo, IL. Pronounced that way by locals.

[@markmitchell8539]

Because it’s named after Cairo, Illinois which is pronounced “Kay-ro”

[@BigMrFirebird]

@@markmitchell8539 So how would these people pronounce Cairo, in Egypt?

[@badcornflakes6374]

​@@BigMrFirebird Kai Row