John M. Brooke (1826-1906) served as the Confederate commander of ordnance and hydrography in Richmond, Virginia during the Civil War and was the man responsible for raising the Merrimack and outfitting it with armor plates as the CSS Virginia . In this collection of diaries and letters, edited by Brooke's grandson George (history, Virginia Military Institute), the reader can follow Brooke's experiments and thoughts in developing both armored ships and munitions for the Confederate Navy from April 1861 to the end of the Civil War in 1865. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)