Evaluation of Wood Decay and Identification of Fungi Found in the USS <i>Cairo</i>, a Historic American Civil War Ironclad Gunboat.

ABSTRACT: Studies of microbial degradation of historic woods are essential to help protect and preserve these important cultural properties. The USS Cairo is a historic Civil War gunboat and one of the first steam-powered and ironclad ships used in the American Civil War. Built in 1861, the ship sank in the Yazoo River of Mississippi in 1862 after a mine detonated and tore a hole in the port bow. The ship remained on the river bottom and was gradually buried with sediments for over 98 years. After recovery of the ship, it remained exposed to the environment before the first roofed structure was completed in 1980, and it has been displayed under a tensile fabric canopy with open sides at the Vicksburg National Military Park in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Concerns over the long-term preservation of

SUBMITTER: Blanchette RA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12565250 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature