Passaconaway

Passaconaway, which translates to "Child of the Bear", was sachem of the Pennacook people in what is now northern New England in the United States.

Life

One of the key native figures in the colonial history of New Hampshire, Passaconaway was believed to have been born between 1550 and 1570, and is said to have died in 1679. He was a powerful shaman and sachem (chief) of the Pennacook, eventually becoming bashaba (chief of chiefs) of a multi-tribal confederation that drew together for mutual protection against the Mohawk Nation. In his old age Passaconaway relinquished his positions of authority to travel among the tribes and settlers in the New Hampshire-Massachusetts-Maine area. He was revered by both Native Americans and European settlers.

His native name was "Papisse Conewa", meaning, Child of the Bear, or Son of the Bear, but white settlers anglicized the name as Passaconaway. In his later years he was sometimes referred to as St. Aspenquid.

Legend holds that Passaconaway was a giant, genius, and possessed magical powers, such as making water burn, and trees and rocks dance. According to folklore, he could make dried up leaves turn green and make living snakes out of dead snake skin. It was said that he could become invisible and create thunderstorms at will.

Kalamazoo-class monitor

The Kalamazoo-class monitors were a class of ocean-going ironclad monitors begun during the American Civil War. Unfinished by the end of the war, their construction was suspended in November 1865 and the unseasoned wood of their hulls rotted while they were still on the building stocks. If the four ships had been finished they would have been the most seaworthy monitors in the US Navy. One was scrapped in 1874 while the other three were disposed of a decade later.

Design and description

John Lenthall, Chief of the Bureau of Construction and Repair, ordered Benjamin F. Delano, naval constructor at New York City, to design a wooden-hulled ironclad that would carry her armament in two gun turrets. The deck was to be 3 feet (0.9 m) above the waterline and protected by 3 inches (76 mm) of armor. The ship's side armor was to be 10 inches (254 mm) thick, backed by 12–15 inches (305–381 mm) of wood; it was to cover the entire ship's side, down to a depth three feet below the waterline. It should carry enough coal to steam one week at full power with "sufficient speed to make good use of its ram".Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy, called them enlarged versions of the Miantonomoh-class monitors with greater speed and "adapted to coast service", meaning more seaworthy.