10-Inch of USS Cumberland on display as a memorial. Unfortunately this historic cannon was scrapped in the 20th Century. Photo courtesy of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum - where it is shown in the USS Cumberland display.

The 10-Inch Dahlgren of USS Cumberland: USS Cumberland, laid down in 1824 as one of the "Gradual Increase of the Navy" frigates, had been built to a design that was an evolution of the heavy frigates such as USS Constitution. As designed she would have been intended to carry thirty 32-Pounders on her main deck and around twenty-four 42-Pounder carronades on her spar deck. When she entered commission in 1842 she seems to have carried fewer carronades and additional 32-Pounders on the spar deck.

In 1855-57, she was "razeed" to a large Sloop-of-War. Her main deck battery of thirty 32-Pounders had been replaced with twenty 9-Inch Dahlgrens. Her spar deck battery was removed except for two 10-Inch Dahlgrens mounted as pivot guns fore and aft.

In 1861 the aft pivot was replaced with a "70-Pounder" rifle.

(There is some disagreement to the identity of this "70-Pounder". I tend to think that it was a 6-Inch Dahlgren Rifle. Dahlgren called this rifle an "80-Pounder", but rifle projectiles could vary quite a bit in weight. Some sources speculate that it was a 5.3-Inch Parrott Rifle, but this type of Parrott was not manufactured until 1864.)

As CSS Virginia sortied on the morning of March 8th, 1862, Flag Officer Buchanan directed his initial attack against USS Cumberland - likely because Cumberland's rifle and heavy battery of Dahlgrens were thought to pose a greater threat to the ironclad than that of USS Congress which was armed almost entirely with 32-Pounders and a few lighter 8-Inch shellguns.

USS Cumberland, of course, was rammed by CSS Virginia. USS Cumberland would sink with the loss of 121 of her crew. However, Cumberland's gunners fought their ship until it sank out from under them. Among the reports in the Official Records from the battle is that of Acting Master Kennison who commanded USS Cumberland's forward 10-Inch Dahlgren pivot. Kennison wrote after the battle:

"During the terrible action of the 8th, off Newport News, the forward 10-Inch pivot gun of the Cumberland, as all around say, even the rebels, that the gun was well worked and handled, and there was no sign of flinching; even at the instant of collision a shot was fired which the rebels themselves say did great execution on board the Merrimack. After she had struck us, I did not stop to look at her, but superintended the loading, to give her a few more of the same sort. Even after the deck was burst up with a shell, near the abeam pivot hole, I worked the forward hole until the order was given to take to the boats. At this time the port forecastle deck was under water, and with a last shot at the enemy I left my quarters to look out for a chance to save myself."

Lieutenant George Morris of Cumberland wrote that even after the forward magazine flooded, the ship's crew managed to take charges from the aft powder magazine to keep the forward 10-Inch Dahlgren in action. (Official Records - Navies. Series 1. Volume 7. Pp. 21-23.)

While much has been made of the fact that USS Monitor's 11-Inch Dahlgrens were not fired with what would (only later) be considered "full charges", I find it curious that seemingly no one has made the same spurious claim about all the other Dahlgren guns in action on March 8th and 9th. While the 10-Inch Dahlgren would ordinarily be fired with a twelve and a half pound charge, later war instructions would authorize a fifteen pound charge. The 9-Inch Dahlgren, initially authorized to use a maximum of ten pounds of propellant, would eventually be authorized for thirteen in action against ironclads.

USS Cumberland's 10-Inch Dahlgren sank with the ship. At some point after the war, the cannon was recovered from the wreck and mounted as a memorial, I believe in Michigan. Unfortunately it seems that this historic Dahlgren was scrapped during one of the patriotic scrap drives of the First or Second World Wars. A photo of the 10-Inch Dahlgren is displayed at the Hampton Roads Naval Museum.

The 10-Inch Dahlgren weighed approximately 12,000 pounds and fired a 128 pound shot or (approximately) 100 pound shell. Compare to a 9-Inch Dahlgren (9,000 pounds with a 90 pound shot and 63 pound shell) and an 11-Inch Dahlgren (16,000 pounds with a 166 pound shot or approximately 125 pound shell).

The 10-Inch Dahlgren of USS Cumberland

The Cannons of the North Carolina State Capitol

Santee1821: Naval Artifacts and Artillery