Vicksburg National Military Park in Warren County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)

A Ton an Hour - USS Cairo

A Ton an Hour - USS <i>Cairo</i> Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mark Hilton, October 25, 2017

1. A Ton an Hour - USS Cairo Marker

Inscription. Look down to your left to see one of Cairo's restored firebox doors. Coal shoveled into the fireboxes heated the boilers. Steam from the boilers powered Cairo's engines and drove the paddle wheel. A gunboat without steam could not move and was helpless if attacked. Ironclads kept fires burning and steam pressure built up even when anchored. For hours on end, coal heavers piled coal from storage bunkers into the fire room, and firemen fed the fuel into each boiler's firebox.

[Caption]- Cairo's boilers burned a ton of coal an hour when the boat was underway.

Erected by National Park Service, Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: War, US Civil • Waterways & Vessels.

Location. 32° 22.546′ N, 90° 52.003′ W. Marker is in Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi, in Warren County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Union Avenue and Confederate Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Union Avenue, Vicksburg MS 39183, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A Crew of Immigrants (here, next to this marker); Pilothouse - USS Cairo (here, next to this marker); Capstan - USS Cairo

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(here, next to this marker); Chimneys - USS Cairo (a few steps from this marker); The Sinking of Cairo (a few steps from this marker); Hog Chains - USS Cairo (a few steps from this marker); Torpedoed & Sunk (a few steps from this marker); Full Steam Ahead! (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Vicksburg National Military Park.

Additional keywords. A Ton an Hour - USS Cairo

Marker and the <i>Cairo's</i> firetube boilers. image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mark Hilton, October 25, 2017

2. Marker and the Cairo's firetube boilers.

The USS Cairo's five fire tube boilers are among the oldest and best surviving examples of the type designed for boats plying the western waters. The boilers operated at 140 pounds per square inch steam pressure and consumed almost a ton of coal per hour.

The USS <i>Cairo</i> image. Click for full size.

Public domain

3. The USS Cairo

Photographed in the Mississippi River area during 1862, with a boat alongside her port bow, crewmen on deck and other river steamers in the background.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 22, 2017. It was originally submitted on November 22, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 310 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 22, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.