"Her lines were convex; for a figurehead she had the Goddess of Liberty robed in the American ensign, the right hand pointing forward, the left, grasping the emblems of harvest, one foot rested on a carved representation of the globe.

On 26 April, she forced schooner Chase aground on Raccoon Key near Cape Romain, South Carolina, and destroyed her.

She drove schooner Sarah aground at Bull's Bay, South Carolina, where she was destroyed by her own crew to prevent capture on 1 May.

In May, Onward and USS Mohican cornered Confederate tenders Agrippina and Castor which supplied coal, gunpowder, and provisions for Southern raiders CSS Alabama and Georgia, in Bahia, Brazil and hemmed them in port until they were forced to sell their fuel and munitions to obtain clearance from port.

Assigned as store ship (fourth-rate, three guns) to the South Atlantic Squadron,Onward spent much of 1866 anchored at Rio de Janeiro, with voyages to Santos Harbor, Brazil, and Rio de la Plata, Montevideo, Uruguay.

In 1867 Onward was attached to the Asiatic Squadron under Rear-Admiral H. H. Bell, sailing from Rio de Janeiro to New York City 5 March - 14 April 1867 under command of Acting Volunteer LTCDR Pierre Giraud.

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