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I _v^"— i^^«SB Hi 1863 did he finally start south. His goal was Chattanooga, Rosecrans. By moving up the east side of Chickamauga flee. He coolly formed a new defensive line to protect his gateway to Georgia and a hub for rail lines to all parts Creek, Bragg now sought to turn the Union left and seize flank, and here his men repulsed Longstreet's onslaughts of the Confederacy. the roads to Chattanooga, hoping thus to drive Rosecrans the rest of the afternoon, earning for Thomas the nick­ back into the mountains and reoccupy the city. name, "Rock of Chickamauga." After covering the army's Meanwhile, Rosecrans saw that the situation had retreat, this force withdrew in good order to Chattanooga. W/Wi changed and hurried to unite his scattered forces at Chick­ amauga Creek. On September 18 the Confederates began forcing the bridges and fords over the creek, and by late that night most of Bragg's army was across. Early the next morning the two armies faced each other west of CHfflANOOOn these fields and hills Union and Confederate Uarmies the creek along a line of several miles. Fighting began clashed during the fall of 1863 in some of the hardest just after dawn with a skirmish on Rosecrans' left. fighting of the Civil War. The prize was Chattanooga, key rail center and gateway to the heart of the Confed­ eracy. In September at Chickamauga, 11 miles below Chattanooga, Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg attacked and drove from the field Gen. William S. Rosecrans' battle-toughened Federals. A Union disaster, the battle was also a hollow Confederate victory, for a hesitant Bragg failed to pursue his routed enemy. Two months later a reinforced under Gen. Ulysses S. Grant broke the Confederate siege lines around Chatta­ nooga in a series of battles that prepared the way for Sherman's sweep through the South. Braxton Bragg

When Rosecrans did get underway, he handled his cam­ George H. Thomas paign with skill. The terrain favored the Confederates, but by feints and flanking marches he maneuvered Bragg out The Confederates had won, but they had won dearly. of his strong position and forced him to abandon central Bragg's losses in killed, wounded, and missing totaled over Tennessee and retreat across the Tennessee River into 18,000 of the 66,000 troops engaged. Rosecrans lost Chattanooga. There Bragg dug in again, guarding the 16,000 out of 58,000. river crossings to the northeast where probes had led him After Chickamauga, Bragg allowed four important days to expect the attack. He little thought that Rose­ A skirmish at a Chickamauga to slip by before pursuing the Union army. When finally Creek bridge before the battle. crans would attempt to cross the high mountain barrier underway, he found the so well south of the city to get at the Confederates' exposed This action quickly developed into a general battle that entrenched in Chattanooga that a frontal assault would southern flank. spread south for nearly 4 miles. The armies fought des­ have been disastrous. Stunned by his own losses, and re­ Rosecrans' ruse worked. In early September his army perately all day, often hand-to-hand through thick woods fusing to believe that he had won a fine victory, Bragg suddenly crossed the river below the city, and Bragg had broken occasionally with cultivated fields. Gradually the settled down to siege operations, content to try to starve to relinquish his position in order to maintain rail com­ Confederates pushed the Federals back to the LaFayette the Union army into surrender. munications southward. As Rosecrans' army, now divided road, but were unable to close it. When darkness came, Bragg's tactics capitalized on geography. Confederates into three groups, crossed , over 40 the exhausted armies stopped to rest and reorganize. took up positions on the high ground overlooking Chatta­ miles of rough terrain separated its flanks. Though the Neither could claim victory, both had suffered heavy nooga and in the valleys west and south of the city. He parts were not within supporting distance of one another, losses. now controlled almost all traffic into Chattanooga. His William S. Rosecrans Rosecrans' daring maneuver might have been safe if the The next morning the Confederate right renewed the troops held the rail lines, and his guns on the heights dom­ Confederates had been retreating, as he assumed they attack, but the Union position would not yield. As the inated the river. Only a roundabout wagon road over the Late in June 1863 Rosecrans' Army of the Cumberland, were. day wore on, Rosecrans shifted one of his divisions, leav­ ridge behind the city lay outside his grasp. Confederate some 58,000 strong, moved out from Murfreesboro and Yet Bragg was not retreating. He was, instead, pre­ ing a gap in his ranks. Before the line could be repaired, raids on this road in early October underscored the Union advanced on Bragg's 43,000 Confederates dug in 20 miles paring a shrewd counterstroke. Moving to Lafayette, Ga., three divisions under Gen. smashed into plight. southeast to defend the road to Chattanooga. Six months where reinforcements were arriving from Virginia and the hole, cutting Rosecrans' army in half and sweeping Starvation seemed inevitable. The Federal soldiers were earlier the same two armies had clashed at Stones River. Mississippi, he concentrated his forces and awaited a his entire right and part of his center from the field. Only first reduced to half rations, then to quarter. Guards kept After a 3-day struggle, Rosecrans pushed Bragg out of chance to strike his opponent in detail. At this point, the Union left, now anchored on Snodgrass Hill, held its hungry troops from stealing the feed for horses and mules. Murfreesboro and forced him to retire southward. Then faulty execution balked his tactics, as twice the failure of position, aided by fragments from retreating units. One regiment even "killed and ate a dog which wandered came a lull, as Rosecrans resisted all urgings to attack subordinate commanders to carry out orders allowed vul­ On this hill stood Gen. George H. Thomas, new field into camp." Ten thousand horses and mules were killed Bragg. Only when the fall of Vicksburg loomed in mid- nerable Union detachments to escape, a lesson not lost on commander after collapse of the line forced Rosecrans to or died. In Chattanooga during the siege all fared poorly. Washington, realizing that a trapped army had to be res­ outnumbered Bragg's by 56,000 to 46,000, but the latter's trouble. Replacing burned bridges over Chattanooga I — »—- — • cued, responded by sending both new command and rein­ defensive position more than compensated for numerical Creek delayed him 5 hours, and it was late afternoon forcements. Nearly 37,000 troops under Gen. Joseph inferiority. The Confederate line arched from Lookout before he reached . Hooker and part of Grant's Vicksburg force under Gen. Mountain across Chattanooga Valley and along Missionary To relieve the situation on the flanks, Grant sent the William T. Sherman hurried toward Chattanooga in late Ridge to its northern end. A small detachment held the Army of the Cumberland forward to attack the rifle pits September and early October. Thomas replaced Rose- difficult terrain around Lookout Mountain, while in the at the base of Missionary Ridge. In a rush Thomas's men crans, and Grant became overall commander. valley and along the ridge infantry and were carried the trenches, then—without waiting for further strongly posted. Bragg had every reason to think that his orders—surged up the hillside in one of the great charges position was impregnable. But his opponent was a gen­ of the war and broke the Confederate line. Soon the eral with a plan. whole center collapsed, and gray-clad veterans fled in re­ On November 23 Grant set his forces in motion. To treat down the back slope. Only Bragg's right held firm, gain maneuvering room and test Confederate strength, he but at nightfall it too withdrew to cover the general re­ sent three of Thomas' divisions forward to seize a small treat across . The next day Cleburne hill, named Orchard Knob, that stood about a mile in blunted the Union pursuit, and the army safely escaped. front of Missionary Ridge. In a minor action they drove The results of the battle were momentous. Union vic­ the Confederate skirmishers and advance guard off the hill tory raised the siege, and the beaten Confederates fell and back to the ridge. Occasional artillery exchanges back into Georgia. Nearly all of Tennessee now came ended the day's fighting. under Federal control. The next spring Chattanooga be­ Then Grant launched his power strikes at the ends of came the springboard for Sherman's invasion of the heart­ the Confederate lines. land of the Confederacy. On the night of the 23d Sherman began bridging the river close to the mouth of South Chickamauga Creek. THE MELANCHOLY AFTERMATH By late the next afternoon all his men had crossed over and were engaged with Confederate outposts on the north strength casualties percent end of Missionary Ridge. As Sherman moved into position to assault Bragg's right, < [1,657-K Ulysses S. Grant Hooker led three divisions against the Confederates on O Union: 58,222 16,17()J 9,756-W 28 Lookout Mountain. Pressing along the mountain slopes i< 4,757-M To break the Confederate grip Grant first had to open from the west, the Federals gradually drove back the de­ S fenders. The fighting was heaviest at Cravens farm, where a supply line over Raccoon Mountain into Chattanooga. £j f 2,312-K ••••• Bi^to M W^. During the night of October 26-27 he boldly sent 1,500 Confederates made a stubborn stand. When finally dis­ O Confederate: 66,326 18,4544 14,674-W 28 soldiers floating down the Tennessee from the city. Un­ lodged, they retreated to a new line 400 yards back. At g [ 1,468-M detected in the dark night, they slipped by Moccasin Bend this point low clouds rolled in over Lookout Mountain— and landed at Brown's Ferry on the west side of the river. as they often do today—and the fighting ended. • fc M I i ^^WmJrSwttv'iW'I'l'i After driving back Confederate pickets, they quickly threw Though not defeated, the Confederates found their posi­ < f 753-K ^^ TT- ,1 m BHi a pontoon bridge across the water. tion endangered by the Union advance. Rather than risk O Union: 56,360 5,8244 4,722-W 10 Hooker's advance from the east coincided with this being cut off from the main force on Missionary Ridge, § 349-M J| . ^'i| ™n &..,.., attack. His men cleared the Confederates out of Lookout Bragg evacuated his troops from both the mountain and Z Valley, and the "cracker line" was soon established. From the valley below. The next morning when the Federals H f 361-K then on supplies moved unhindered by boat upriver to scaled the palisade, they found the heights deserted. < Confederate: 46,165 6,66742,160-W 14 Kelly's Ford and on to Chattanooga by wagon. When battle resumed on , Union fortunes E [4,146-M © \ As the Federals built up their army, the Confederates looked bright. Sherman faced Confederate Gen. Pat Cle­ dissipated theirs. Early in November Bragg sent Long- burne's veterans on the right. Hooker commanded Look­ street with 15,000 men to take Knoxville and capture out Mountain, in good position to assault Bragg's left. Based on Livermore, Numbers and Losses. Gen. 's army. Bragg hoped that Long- Thomas held the center at Orchard Knob. ALL PHOTOS: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. street could defeat Burnside and get back to Chattanooga As Grant planned it, Sherman would deliver the major I • _^ before a Union thrust there. The move did little more blow, while Hooker and Thomas applied pressure on their GPO : 1965 0 — 768-84! than frighten Washington, but it fatally weakened the parts of the line to keep Bragg from shifting troops to aid Confederates. Longstreet was still sparring with Burnside Cleburne. Sherman's failure to carry Cleburne's works For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.G., 20402 - Price 15 cents at Knoxville days after battle had ended at Chattanooga. flawed this scheme. For 8 hours, from early morning Grant arrived in Chattanooga on October 23. By mid- until mid-afternoon, his men pounded the Confederate U.S. DEPARTMENT of the INTERIOR November he was ready to break the siege. His forces entrenchments without success. Hooker, too, ran into National Park Service ABOUT YOUR VISIT ADMINISTRATION TIMETABLES OF BATTLE o< November 23: o 2 p.m. Sheridan's and Wood's divisions drive Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park o Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park is administered by the National Park Service, U.S. De­ z in Confederate pickets and capture consists of several separate areas near Chattanooga. < Orchard Knob. partment of the Interior. H Chickamauga Battlefield, 7 miles south of Chattanooga The National Park System, of which this park is a H : < on U.S. 27, includes almost the entire scene of this battle. unit, is dedicated to conserving the scenic, scientific, and < September 20: X 8 a.m. Hooker sends three divisions against The park visitor center, near the northern boundary, is a historic heritage of the for the benefit and o u D 9:30 a.m. Confederates renew attacks on Union Lookout Mountain; Confederates focal point for orientation and information. It is open inspiration of the people. < left, as Bragg sends Polk against withdraw during the night to Mis­ from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. A superintendent, whose address is Fort Oglethorpe, Ga. < Thomas's entrenchments. sionary Ridge. Point Park and Lookout Mountain Battlefield. From 30742, is in immediate charge of the park. Sherman crosses the river north of 11 a.m. To aid Thomas, Rosecrans moves Point Park, on the northern tip of Lookout Mountain, u town and prepares to attack. I—I Wood's division to the left. there is a comprehensive view of the whole area. The oX November 25: Ochs Museum there depicts both the siege and battle of 11:10 a.m. Longstreet drives forward at the 7 a.m. Sherman battles Cleburne on the right. Chattanooga. Nearby are the restored Cravens House, Brotherton farm, breaking through 10 a.m. Hooker moves from Lookout Moun­ picnic grounds, and several miles of hiking trails. Point the gap left by Wood. THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR—the Na­ tain to strike the Confederate left. Park is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. tion's principal natural resource agency—bears a special 2 p.m. Confederates launch attacks against 3 p.m. Grant orders Thomas to move out Missionary Ridge. This battle is commemorated by a obligation to assure that our expendable resources are con­ Snodgrass Hill, where Thomas has series of park areas along the summit. They can be served, that our renewable resources are managed to pro­ stabilized the Union line. against the Confederate center. 4 p.m. Confederate line on the ridge collapses. reached by way of Crest Road. Orchard Knob, where duce optimum benefits, and that all resources contribute 3:30 p.m. Granger's reserve corps reinforces Grant had his headquarters, and Signal Point—both de­ to the progress and prosperity of the United States, now 9 p.m. Cleburne withdraws from the ridge Thomas. tached points of interest—are located on the map below. and in the future. and covers the Confederate retreat. 7:30 p.m. Thomas withdraws and fighting ends.

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