This museum does an excellent job of presenting the story of the USS Monitor's loss and recovery in a way that is both engaging and informative. It was interesting to stand on the platform to view the recovered parts of the ship (not sure when "budget cuts" prevented this, per another reviewer, but they are in tanks of preservation solution and the tanks can be viewed), but also interesting to see the models of the turret then and now. The film that showed the actual recovery of the turret had me cheering along with the archaeologists and naval personnel doing the work. Don't miss this terrific museum.
If you ever want to know about history of civil war or naval this is a great place and it first hurt to have newport news shipbuilding down the street to volunteer to help out on projects
The history and archeological wonder of finding and bringing up part of the Monitor is awesome and is worth a detour from the beaten track.
Great, well maintained museum. Didnt realize there are two listings for this item. Travelocity needs to fix this!
We visited the USS Monitor Center as part of Maritime Museum. It was very interesting to stand on the scale model of the ship and to see what was left of it in the giant tank. We found it informative and impressive. Well worth the stop for anyone who is interested in the Iron Clads of the US Civil War.
Wealth of information and great exhibits. Could spend hours here. Went on a day when not many others were there it seemed like. There is a lot to see and learn. Great to go after learning about Civil war.
We went because I wanted to see the Monitor. I was anticipating with a 5 & 3 yr old to spend only an hour. We got there at noon and had to leave at 5 because they were closing. It was air conditioned except for the one outside display and had a number if interaction activities that the kids liked and the short movies were the right length. We had a great time. It was interesting for the adults also.
Lots to see and read. Interesting to see the actual cannons and other pieces of the historic ship. Fair portrayal of the battle,and the hardships endured on both sides by the combatants daily. Worth a visit to see thestories and the items.
Very informative and realistic model of the ironclad. It is unfortunate that you can no longer glimpse the real Monitor due to budget cuts.
This is a small, but well organized and informative museum on the Monitor and Virginia Civil War battleships. There are galleries with displays of nautical items, ship models, and rescue at sea. You can also see the desalination tanks holding the Monitor's turret, gun(s), and engine.