8 THE DELAMATER IRON WORKS— 



Ericsson's caloric engine business was still thriving and this type of power was 

 applied to fog-horns in lighthouses where fresh water for power purposes was 

 scarce. When the largest of these, constructed for the lighthouse at Montauk Pt. 

 Long Island, was tested in the shop it caused such a vibration to the building that 

 it had to be moved so that the horn could be located out of doors. 



There came to them at this time a good deal of work for sugar refineries, con- 

 sisting of boilers, engines, tanks, etc., and in one of their orders they equipped the 

 new refinery of Moller & Martin at Corlears Slip at Grand Street and the East 

 River. When this work was completed in 1858 Mr. Hogg was offered a partner- 

 ship in the sugar-house firm which he accepted and left Mr. DeLamater to run the 

 business alone, moving his residence to 59th Street, Brooklyn. 



Mr. DeLamater then changed the name of the works to The DeLamater Iron 

 Works, which it continued to bear thereafter. He moved his home to 333 West 

 15th Street at this time. An advertisement of the time reads: — "Cornelius H. De- 

 Lamater Iron W^orks, Manufacturers of Engines, Boilers, Castings, Machinery, etc.'' 



When the Civil War broke out these large and well-equipped shops possessed 

 special facilities for war work, and Mr. DeLamater promptly offered them to the 

 Government for such work as might be needed. He became a charter member of 

 the Union League and took an active part in the patriotic services rendered by that 

 body. 



Knowing Ericsson's mental equipment in ordnance engineering science, Mr. De- 

 Lamater had frequent conferences with him about the work they would be able to 

 perform for the Government. 



In 1854 Ericsson had sent to Napoleon III plans for an armed ironclad tur- 

 reted steamer differing from what is known as the original Monitor only in that the 

 turret had a rounded dome. The emperor did nothing with them, but he was so 

 greatly interested that he acknowledged them personally and sent Ericsson a gold 

 medal testifying his appreciation. 



Mr. DeLamater knew of this and they talked over the possibility of utilizing 

 the design in the then existing emergency. Ericsson said that the original plan was 

 the conception of his boyhood days, but that he had given the subject thirty years 

 study and would willingly offer his matured ideas to the Government if he could be 

 assured of an unbiased reception, for he knew of the prejudice still existing against 

 him in the Navy Department since the Stockton episode. 



Then came the word that the Southern Confederacy was fitting out the iron- 

 clad Merrimac with which they expected to capture every northern port and sea- 

 board, destroy our commerce and compel the surrender of Washington. 



On August 3, 1861, President Lincoln approved an act appointing a board to 

 determine upon building ironclad steam vessels. The board was named August 8. 

 An advertisement inviting proposals was promptly published, and Mr. DeLamater 

 at once called on Ericsson to determine upon a method of approaching the Govern- 

 ment. Ericsson was disinclined to take the initiative, realizing that the authorities 

 were fully informed regarding his capabilities and yet had totally ignored him, and 



