The bomb ship, Thunder , initially anchored too far away and quickly disabled itself when too much powder was used to compensate for the distance. The recoil damaged the ship and left it silent. After about an hour the Actaeon , Syren , and Sphynx attempted to move in closer for enfilading fire on Fort Sullivan, but the pilots were unfamiliar with the harbor and all three ships got stuck fast on Middle Ground shoal, where the famous Fort Sumter would later be built. Syren and Sphynx eventually rejoined the battle. The British continued their bombardment to little effect because of the fort's construction of palmetto logs.
Palmetto is soft and spongy and simply absorbed the cannonballs.
Meanwhile, the Americans expended roughly one-seventh the amount of powder that the British did, but the slow and steady American fire was quite accurate. The Bristol , Commodore Parker's flagship, was disabled. The next morning the Actaeon was set afire and abandoned. Privacy Statement . Lt. General Sir Henry Clinton sailed back to New York City.