Late in the afternoon of October 1st, 1861, the Confederate steamers Raleigh, Junaluska and Curlew engaged and seized the Union tug Fanny three miles west of here. Her ammunition and supplies, intended for 600 Union soldiers camped at Chicamacomico near Loggerhead Inlet, were instead delivered to the Confederate troops at Roanoke Island. Pressed into Confederate service, the Fanny returned to the Union camp three days later as part of the “Mosquito Fleet.” The offensive resulted in a Union retreat toward Cape Hatteras, beginning the battle known as the “Chicamacomico Races.”