As a boy he worked in Salem for the prominent merchant and future Senator George Cabot.

He joined the Massachusetts State Navy in July 1776 as First Lieutenant of the sloop-of-war Tyrannicide, fourteen guns.

[1] In 1778, Haraden began his career as a privateersman, commanding the General Pickering, sloop of fourteen guns.

On October 13, 1779, he engaged three British privateers off New Jersey simultaneously and captured a twenty-two gun sloop in the Bay of Biscay.

When the larger British privateer, Achilles of forty guns, attempted to recapture the sloop a few days later, Haraden forced it to disengage after three hours' action at close quarters.