"CSS Neuse Interpretive Center, Kinston NC" Topic

The CSS Neuse Museum is having a ribbon cutting next weekend (7 March, 2015) on their new displays. link I got a sneak peek this morning and it looks like it's going to be good. I would encourage anyone in the area to stop in and have a look.

On a side note, if you're on the mezzanine level say hello to the reenacors and ask for Gary. I like to say hello to my fellow TMPers when I stumble across them.

I visited the NEUSE many years ago and was the only one there. There were two curators, so one of them took me out to the hull and talked for half an hour about getting cotton and turpentine and such to do the caulking. It's been a long time, but I remember being astonished that they had trouble getting what they needed -- pitch, maybe? -- because of course NC is filled with pine trees -- but apprently the right kind of stuff came from New England?

It was a neat experience, though.

Private, Doc, any gamers living nearby:
Do you think the center would welcome some ACW naval gamers to run simulations with ships that were stationed in the area?
You could run a what-if with the Neuse and the Albemarle ganging up on the blockade fleet, and potential response from Casco-class monitors sent in reprisal.

I did speak to their operations manager about doing just that and he said they would love activities such as that. I have to paint up my Thoroughbred ships for some games there.

It looks very cool. Kinston is about 4 1/2 hours from me. Easily doable in a weekend (just not this one).