On the morning of 21 July 1918, German submarine , commanded by
Kapitänleutnant Richard Feldt, was possibly attempting to cut the trans-Atlantic
submarine communications cable from Orleans to
Brest, France. While in the area for the buried cable, Feldt became aware of the passing
tugboat Perth Amboy towing three
barges and the three-masted
schooner Lansford. It was claimed that
U-156 fired two
torpedoes; however, these were likely shells that missed their target or were warning shots across the ''Perth Amboy's
bow. It is unlikely the U-156 would have wasted valuable torpedoes on a group of small unarmed ships. U-156'' then appeared off Orleans and fired her two
deck guns at the tug and her tow. Two
Curtiss HS-2L flying boats from the recently completed
Naval Air Station Chatham dropped bombs near
U-156; but the bombs failed to explode due to technical problems or because the airmen on watch that Sunday were inexperienced at arming the bombs.
U-156 elevated her guns to fire at the aircraft, but missed. Some shells landed harmlessly in a deserted marsh and on Nauset Beach, giving the town of Orleans the distinction of being the only spot in the United States that received enemy fire during World War I, but there is no evidence that these were deliberately aimed at the shore. There were no targets of value in the area other than the vessels. There were no fatalities. Nearby Station No. 40 of the
United States Coast Guard launched a surfboat under heavy enemy shellfire and rowed out to rescue the 32 sailors trapped aboard the tug and barges. After firing 147 shells in the hour-long engagement,
U-156 submerged about 11:30a.m. A sign above the beach commemorates the engagement: "Three miles offshore, in the direction of the arrow, was the scene of attack of a German submarine on a tug and barges July 21, 1918. Several shells struck the beach. This is the only section of the United States' coast shelled by the enemy during World War I." ==Aftermath==