Thanks again,

Don't you read it as sighting the Harriet Lane being 12-15 miles away from the bar or harbor entrance at the time of sightings, not that the Harriet Lane had reached the bar yet?

The Harriet Lanes orders were to proceed to the Charleston Bar, 10 miles distant from and due east of the light-house on the morning of the 11th of April. Isn't the Old Charleston Light-House about a mile or less from the main ship channel and within mile to three miles from the actual bar?

Citation three, was written by Beauregard in his after action report titled "Charleston, S. C., April 27, 1861...report of the bombardment and surrender of Fort Sumter and the incidents connected therewith:" Whether it was the fleet (which it wasn't) or not a ship from that assembling fleet arrived on the 11th as expected by the Confederates at Charleston, for they knew what ships the fleet consisted and what their duties were. He expected the fleet to be there and described the one ship sighting as a fleet. An identified vessel was THEN, according to Beauregard a FLEET, lying at the harbor entrance between the hours of 11:00 P.M. on the 11th of April and 12:45 A.M. of the 12th of April, 1861. I have not found evidence that the Harriet Lane was not there at that time but I have not found an official time of arrival either.

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David Upton