ordered a 32-pound cannon shot fired across the bow of the steamer, which eventually hoisted an American flag; Faunce allowed her to pass into the harbor. The steamer turned out to be the South Carolina steamship Nashville, which later became an infamous blockade-runner and Confederate cruiser. Regarding the shot fired across the Nashville’s bow, Faunce later stated that it “had the desired effect.” Historians consider it the first naval shot of the Civil War. With shellfire raining down on Fort Sumter, and no protection for the Federal troop ships, further relief efforts were futile. The fort’s commanding officer finally ordered the white flag raised and the relief expedition evacuated the troops from Sumter. Harriet Lane then escorted the troop ships back to New York. Harriet Lane continued to serve a vital role in Union naval operations. In the spring of 1861, she served as a guard ship in Hampton Roads, where she shelled Confederate strongholds behind enemy lines. In August, the Lane participated in the Battle of Hatteras Inlet on the North Carolina coast. This campaign was one of the first amphibious operations of the war, and it resulted in a major Union victory. Of the cutter’s performance, Harper’s Weekly reported, “Harriet Lane opened fire. With her rifled guns she did good execution.
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Cutter Harriet Lane also played a vital role in the Civil War’s first combat operation. With the April 1861 standoff between Federal troops at Fort Sumter and Secessionist forces in Charleston, South Carolina, President Abraham Lincoln authorized an expedition to relieve the fort. The expedition included ships carrying 500 troops and an armed escort that included Harriet Lane. During the voyage south from New York, a severe storm separated the cutter and her convoy, so she arrived off Charleston on Thursday, 11 April, in advance of the rest of the ships. On shore, news spread quickly of the Federal ship’s arrival. Early the next morning, Confederate guns at Fort Moultrie opened fire on Sumter to prevent Federal troops from landing. These were the first artillery shots of the Civil War. Later that morning, transports for the expedition found Harriet Lane at a prearranged rendezvous point and the revenue cutter tried to escort them to beleaguered Fort Sumter. By the time the ships neared the fort, the artillery fire grew so intense that they had to turn back. Harriet Lane returned to her station guarding the harbor entrance and later that day the cutter observed the approach of a steamer flying no flag. The Lane ordered the unidentified vessel to heave to and show her colors. The ship ignored these signals and continued toward Charleston Harbor. Captain Faunce
Captain John Faunce, commanding officer of the US Revenue Cutter Harriet Lane at the onset of the Civil War. He ordered the cutter’s gun crews to fire the first naval shot of the Civil War outside Charleston Harbor.
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The Cutter Harriet Lane Fires Across the Bow of Nashville by Howard Koslow. USRC Harriet Lane forces the merchant steamer Nashville to show her colors during the attack on Fort Sumter, 12 April 1861.
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SEA HISTORY 163, SUMMER 2018