The White Hall Vessel, Confederate ironclad

[rebelatsea]

Corey makes a very good point regarding the machinery layout of the "Nashville" type vessels with paddle machinery whether converted to drive screws or not.
The original design for this type was almost certainly an 8 gun shallow draft vessel, hence the wide beam, intended to be twin screw driven and it was probably 40 -50ft shorter. ( imagine Nashville with the centre section including paddleboxes taken out)
Converting such a design to take available paddle machinery would mean length having to be increased, as the engines and drive would protrude into the casemate, as almost certainly would the tops of the boilers.
Interestingly CSS Tennesse, also fitted with converted paddle machinery was not increased in length as her deep draft meant it could all be accommodated in the hold.

I believe the Whitehall IC was originally intended to have 8 guns, but I suspect, although there is no known evidence that someone, possibly James Warner with his penchant for simplicity, suggested heavier armour and less guns.

[rebelatsea]

On the subject of CSN manpower, I read somewhere that at one point, over 25% of the crews of the Charleston Squadron were of "non white" origin.

[rebelatsea]

The original design for the "Nashville" type shallow draught twin screw IC might have looked something like this.

[Joe711]

Hi CT !
I started building in Whitehall!

Joe

[ct ertz]

Awesome. I look forward to it.
CT