South Atlantic Blockade
Assigned to the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, Gemsbok sailed from Boston on 6 September 1861 for her duty station off Wilmington, North Carolina.
On 19 September, she captured schooner Harmony off Cape Hatteras and three days later took schooner Mary E. Pindar off Federal Point, North Carolina. Schooner Beverly fell to Gemsbok just outside Frying Pan Shoals on 3 October, while on 18 October the English brig Ariel — loaded with salt — was captured off Wilmington.
In November Gemsbok reported for blockade duty at Beaufort, North Carolina. On 16 January 1862, her crew — with that of Albatross — boarded and burned York, grounded near Bogue Inlet, North Carolina, while unloading supplies from Dublin.
Read more about this topic: USS Gemsbok (1861)
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