Complex sentence: The battle is notable because it is the earliest exchange of gunfire between the Union Navy and organized Rebel forces after the surrender of Fort Sumter on April 14,1861 and the earliest reported military engagement in Virginia during the Civil War.
Split into simpler sentences: The battle is notable because it is the earliest exchange of gunfire between the Union Navy and organized Rebel forces after the surrender of Fort Sumter on April 14,1861. It is also the earliest reported military engagement in Virginia during the Civil War.