5. Running the blockade required subterfuge on the part of the British and Confederates
After Lincoln proclaimed the blockade, shipments of supplies directly to American ports became a problem for British ships and their owners. To circumvent the legal search of ships bound for American ports, ships carried their cargoes to the Bahamas and Bermuda. There they were offloaded and their cargoes were transferred to ships from Confederate ports. Union ships had no legal authority to search ships under neutral flags bound for British ports. Ships outbound to Nassau from Wilmington or Charleston often flew British flags when approaching their destination. It was essential that the Union fleet detect them as they left port.
Nonetheless, the Union Navy’s efficiency in enforcing the blockade improved significantly by the beginning of 1862. Confederate agents and representatives of private companies engaged in blockade running recognized the need for faster ships. British shipyards had long experience in building such ships for packet service in the European trade. Such vessels were typically longer, narrower, and driven by steam-powered paddle wheels or screw propellers. Their design limited their carrying capacity, but their speed was a weapon which helped them elude the ships of the United States Navy.