A New Home After 34 Years
Relocating the CSS Neuse

When questioned by superiors on the possible threat from the Confederate ironclad gunboat being built on the Neuse River upstream from New Bern, Gen. John Peck of the Union Army scoffed: "I don't believe in the iron clad [sic]. Hitherto it has been a question of iron and time." Paraphrasing the general, former state underwater archaeologist Leslie S. Bright now considers it "a question of wood and time." The CSS Neuse is in a second battle for survival—not against Union forces but against the elements of nature and time.

Transporting the Neuse from its Original Display Site

Moving the Neuse After 34 Years
Sections of the hull are removed from the original shelter, prior to transport to a temporary facility on higher ground.

Future Plans for CSS Neuse State Historic Site

The ultimate goal at CSS Neuse State Historic Site is to have the vessel enclosed in a climate controlled facility. This will provide optimal conditions for preservation by regulating the humidity and temperature around the ship. Once it is enclosed, it is likely that topical preservative treatments will no longer be needed.

The enclosure of the ship will provide the site with additional exhibit space. This will be utilized to expand the scope of exhibits to include a more regional approach. Exhibits will focus on the two battles that took place in Kinston as well as aspects of the Civil War in other areas of eastern North Carolina including Goldsboro, Seven Springs, and New Bern. Additional space will be available for interactive exhibits, an audiovisual orientation room, an educational classroom, restrooms, administrative office space, and a gift shop.

Flood Resulting from Hurricane Fran, September 1996

Flood Damage from Hurricane Fran.
The high water reached the Neuse under its shelter at right. The blacksmith shop in the background is half submerged, while the picnic facilities are completely covered by flood waters from the Neuse River.

Why Move the CSS Neuse?

Controlling the humidity and temperature around the vessel is the best way to preserve the artifact according to experts in the field of conservation. The plans to enclose the CSS Neuse were well underway by 1993 with the development of architectural schematics to convert the current shelter. In September 1996, Hurricane Fran made a direct hit on eastern North Carolina and the resulting flood exceeded the "hundred year" flood of 1964. The decision was made in February 1997 not to spend any substantial funds in an area that had the potential to flood that badly. As a result, the only way to insure the enclosure of the ship was to move it out of the floodplain. An area of higher ground on the current site was selected for the relocation of the CSS Neuse and a temporary shelter has been designed that will protect the vessel until a permanent facility is funded.

A Brief Outline of Preservation Efforts at CSS Neuse State Historic Site

1961-1963
Recovery of the CSS Neuse begun by three local businessmen.
November 1963
Governor Terry Sanford approved the allocation of $10,000 for moving the ship and applying wood preservatives to the hull.
1964
CSS Neuse removed from recovery site and relocated to the Governor Caswell Memorial Park by agreement of the Richard Caswell Memorial Commission and the Lenoir County Confederate Centennial Committee.
July 1, 1965
Caswell Memorial Park becomes part of the Historic Sites Section, North Carolina Office of Archives and History.
1969
Open-sided shelter constructed over the gunboat to protect it from rain; windblown precipitation and humidity still a problem under this structure.
1970-1997
Formal preservation of the hull began; care, maintenance, and protection for the vessel carried out by site staff with advice from the state's Underwater Archaeology Unit at Fort Fisher; various topical treatments applied at regular intervals.
1972
CSS Neuse Visitor Center constructed.
March 1992
Site staff attended a Waterlogged Wood Workshop at the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort; advice received there spurred the most recent preservation efforts.
March 1993
Began developing plan to get the CSS Neuse enclosed in an environmentally controlled facility.
December 1993
Applied for a Conservation Assessment Program (CAP) grant through the National Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Property.
February 1994
Met with section administration about further preservation of the CSS Neuse and how the site would best fit with the proposed "Civil War Corridor." The recommendation was to develop a presentation package to sell the idea of enclosing the ship and developing a regional Civil War Museum.
April 1994
Site staff notified that project qualified for CAP grant but funding not available.
August 1994
Met with Kinston Convention and Visitors Bureau executive Jim Godfrey and Kermit Smith of the East Group architectural firm. KCVB agreed to fund development of presentation package valued at $8,400.00.
December 1994
Second CAP grant application submitted.
April 1994
Notified of CAP grant award valued at $3,660.00.
November 1995
CAP grant assessment done; recommendation was to provide the CSS Neuse with a more controlled environment.
March 1996
East Group site plan/schematics completed.
September 1996
Hurricane Fran hit eastern North Carolina and a resulting flood damaged the hull of the CSS Neuse. Extensive flooding required the state to rethink any possibility of enclosing the existing shelter.
December 1996-January 1997
Treatments of sodium borate began per preservationists' recommendations.
February 1997
Decision was made to redirect state repair and renovation funding for Neuse visitor center renovations to the removal of the gunboat from the floodplain.
April 1997
Design firm of McConnell and Associates selected.
June 1997
Met at site with McConnell and Associates to include site needs input.
September 1997
Schematics presented to Historic Sites Section by design firm.
March 1998
Bid opening.
April 1998
Construction of new shelter began.
1998
Construction completed.
September 1999
Hurricane Floyd put three feet of water in the Visitor Center. The entire area was devastated by the flooding.
October 1999
Artifacts moved to Raleigh for re-conservation.
February to April 2006
Visitor Center torn down because of mold and mildew.
July 2003 to June 2004
An addition to the Caswell Memorial provides new offices and restrooms to replace those lost at the Visitor Center.
October 2003
The old East Group building at 100 N. Queen Street was donated to and accepted by the State.
April 2005
Small exhibits produced with the assistance of East Carolina University’s Museum Studies program. The exhibit opens in the new building at 100 N. Queen Street with staff manning the building every Thursday.
2006
Initial tract of land purchased and donated to the State by the Gunboat Association for relocating the CSS Neuse.
2007
Old rundown buildings are demolished to make way for the new museum for the CSS Neuse.
2008
3 million dollars appropriated by the State for the project of moving the CSS Neuse to a fully enclosed and climate controlled building at the Queen Street property.
2009
Project to move the CSS Neuse to the Queen Street property begins.
February 5, 2009
2nd tract of land purchased and donated to the State by the Gunboat Association for relocating the CSS Neuse.

Future Plans for the CSS Neuse State Historic Site

The CSS Neuse is destined for a new, fully enclosed, and climate controlled facility. The project has been in the development stage since the early 1990s, when the original plan was to enclose the existing shelter. This idea was rejected after flooding from Hurricane Fran in 1996 made moving the CSS Neuse a priority. The move occurred in 1998, when the Neuse was placed in a temporary shelter on adjacent higher ground. In 1999, Hurricane Floyd flooded the visitor center, which was eventually condemned. Artifacts were sent to Raleigh to be re-conserved. The Gunboat Association bought property at 100 North Queen Street and donated it to the State of North Carolina, to serve as the future site for the CSS Neuse Interpretive Center. After many setbacks, construction on the new home for the CSS Neuse is slated to take place soon.

Reassembling the Neuse Under its New Temporary Shelter

Reassembling the Fragments of the Neuse.
The first segment of the hull arrives at the new temporary facility on higher ground at the site, not far from the Caswell Memorial.

All photographs © North Carolina Office of Archives & History

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