Under the command of Lieutenant F. M. Harris, the schooner was part of a nine-gunboat naval squadron tasked with the defense of the northeastern North Carolina sounds. She was at anchor in Croatan Sound under the guns of Fort Forrest when a Union army/navy force under the command of General Ambrose Burnside arrived on February 6, 1862 to invade Roanoke Island. Burnside sent his forces to destroy the remains of the Southern Mosquito Fleet still operating in North Carolina's sounds.
Under Lieutenant F. M. Harris' command, a nine-gunboat naval squadron was tasked with defending the northeastern North Carolina sounds. The schooner was anchored in Croatan Sound under Fort Forrest's guns when General Ambrose Burnside led an army/navy force to invade Roanoke Island on February 6, 1862. Burnside aimed to destroy the remaining Southern Mosquito Fleet operating in North Carolina's sounds.