Being the son of an auto mechanic, Rich Carlstedt was exposed to all kinds of mechanisms and instruments at a very young age. Around the age of nine, Rich read a fascinating book about the Civil War Battle of Hampton Roads and, as a result, he became hooked on USS Monitor.

In 1997, Rich heard about efforts to recover USS Monitor artifacts, which became the catalyst for him to begin a multi-decade journey to build a 1/16th-scale working miniature of the vessel’s propulsion engines, which will be on display at the presentation.  

In 2009, the Joe Martin Foundation and the Miniature Engineering Craftsmanship Museum named Carlstedt the “Metalworking Craftsman of the Year” for his research and construction of Monitor’s engine, an honor awarded through a prestigious and secretive international selection process.