She was used as a gunboat by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.

On 14 November 1862 E. B. Hale captured the schooner Wave with a cargo of cotton and turpentine, and on 11 December sailed for New York where she was decommissioned for repairs.

Recommissioned 18 February 1863, E. B. Hale stood out for Port Royal 9 March and during the next 2 years served on patrol and picket duty, having frequent encounters with the Confederates.

She put to sea from Port Royal 24 April 1865 and five days later arrived at the Philadelphia Navy Yard where she was placed out of commission 11 May 1865 and sold 20 June.

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.