mar 18, 1779 - Skirmish at Bull's Inlet

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Two British ships, a schooner with 10 guns and a sloop with 8 guns, caught Capt. Howland coming out of Bull's Inlet and chased the American ship back into the inlet. The British sent in two boats, commanded by a lieutenant with 16 sailors, to seize Capt. Howland's ship, which had 13 men with only four muskets and four swivel guns. When the British boats came alongside, Capt. Howland's men managed to fire one volley before the enemy poured over the side of his ship. It was a fierce fight, with Howland and another man severely wounded and one crewman killed. The British had their lieutenant, a boatswain, and a carpenter killed, with four men wounded. The Patriot prisoners were stripped of their clothes and shoes and put ashore. Capt. Howland was unable to leave and remained a prisoner of the enemy, which also seized the sloop's cargo of 25 hogsheads of tobacco.

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