Nipsic arrived off Morris Island, South Carolina, on 5 November 1863 to join in the blockade of Charleston, where she served until the end of the American Civil War.

[2] Nipsic served primarily with the South Atlantic Squadron off the coast of Brazil, and in the West Indies, protecting American commerce and interests until 1873 when she was decommissioned and subsequently broken up.

After three years service in the Mediterranean and along the north and west coasts of Africa, Nipsic returned to the South Atlantic Squadron in June 1883.

In January 1888 she sailed for Cape Horn and Callao, Peru, whence she departed on 23 September for duty as station ship in Apia Harbour, Samoa.

Gale-force winds arose, and preparations for leaving harbor were begun, but departure was delayed in the hope that conditions next morning would be more favorable for the sortie.

However, by early morning on 16 March the harbor was a mass of foam and spray as hurricane-force winds battered the ships in the 1889 Apia cyclone.