The U.S.S. Undine was a Union gunboat during the U.S. Civil War. After seeing action on both the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers, the Undine was captured by Confederate forces under the command of General Nathan Bedford Forrest on 30 October 1864. After brief duty as a Confederate ship, it was scuttled to prevent its recapture. Since the discovery of the wreck of the Undine significant interest in raising the artifact has developed. The non-profit Raise the Gunboats is currently working with the United States Navy and the Tennessee State Park system to find a permanent home for the ship. The raised and conserved remains of the Undine are the centerpiece of this project.

The project is sited within the New Johnsonville State Park and includes the remains of a Confederate redoubt which was used as an earth shelter during the course of the battle. The remains of the redoubt must not be altered in any way, but present a starting point for the formation of the parti. The boat is elevated off the ground to reduce the amount of offset land and the entrance then drops from above the redoubt within the interior of the embattlement.

The design solution stems from research into the protagonist of the Undine’s tale, Nathan Bedford Forrest. A wealthy landowner before the outbreak of the war, Forrest was one of only a few men to rise from the rank of Private to General over the course of the war. Alongside Abraham Lincoln, many consider Forrest to be one of the greatest figures to emerge out of the course of the war.

In the Southern United States many people still regard the Forrest as a hero. Many others see him as the epitome of southern racist values (primarily for his role in the Fort Pillow massacre and the beginnings of the Klu Klux Klan.) What is clear however, is that Nathan Bedford Forrest was highly influential, highly controversial, and highly respected as a battlefield leader by both sides of the Mason Dixon.

In light of Nathan Bedford’s debated role in history, this project attempts to illustrate the importance information gathering and distribution in a manner that addresses the need for a raw and uninfluenced point of view. Simultaneously, however, a conscience effort was made to deny and allow the same information at certain moments. Nathan Bedford Forrest is used as the subject of this architectural investigation. Intrinsically linked to the fate of the Undine, The Battle of Johnsonville, and the Civil War itself-- Forrest is a polarizing figure which almost everyone hold preconceptions over.

This will be available for web viewing soon. In the meantime, it is downloadable below.
Download project documentation (4 pages; 2,261kb PDF)