I can't offer any definitive information regarding the watches other than to make the observation that conditions were on occasion situational, as they are now. The sick list and presence of the enemy being variables, as well as the size of the vessel and original complement.

Yes, The Laird, Hill and Wigram Yards built 156 gunboats for the Crimean fracas with rapidity. They utilized improvements that influenced U.S. maritime design, as well as ordnance practise.

I have a copy of Confederate engine No.9. This driveline utilized dog clutches. You can find it at the CSN museum in Georgia.

No doubt the placement, often poorly aligned, of the powerplant and driveline in vessels of wood, a rather frangible plastic material, was the cause of a lot of problems.

Regards