The
Battle of Kennesaw Mountain was fought on June 27, 1864, during the
Atlanta CampaignThe Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta, Georgia, during the summer of 1864, leading to the eventual fall of Atlanta and hastening the end of the American Civil War....
of the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
. Despite its name, much of the battle was fought to the southwest of
Kennesaw MountainKennesaw Mountain is a mountain between Marietta and Kennesaw, Georgia, in the United States with a summit elevation of . It is the highest point in the core metro Atlanta area, and fifth after further-north exurban counties are considered...
, near
Marietta, GeorgiaMarietta is a city located in central Cobb County, Georgia, and is its county seat.As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 58,748, making it one of metro Atlanta's largest suburbs. Census estimates of 2007 indicate a population of 67,021...
. The main participants in the battle were the Union armies under the command of
Maj. Gen.In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general. Major general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the...
William T. Sherman and the
Army of TennesseeThe Army of Tennessee was the principal Confederate army operating between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River during the American Civil War. It was formed in late 1862 and fought until the end of the war in 1865, participating in most of the significant battles in the Western Theater...
under the command of Gen.
Joseph E. JohnstonJoseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.Johnston's effectiveness in the Civil War was undercut...
.
All throughout north Georgia, Sherman had advanced his army southeast along the railroad from
Chattanooga, TennesseeChattanooga is the fourth-largest city in Tennessee , and the seat of Hamilton County. Located in southeastern Tennessee on Chickamauga Lake and Nickajack Lake, which are both part of the Tennessee River, Chattanooga lies approximately 120 miles to the northwest of Atlanta, Georgia, about 135...
, towards
Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the state of Georgia, as well as the urban core of one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the United States....
.
The
Battle of Kennesaw Mountain was fought on June 27, 1864, during the
Atlanta CampaignThe Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta, Georgia, during the summer of 1864, leading to the eventual fall of Atlanta and hastening the end of the American Civil War....
of the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
. Despite its name, much of the battle was fought to the southwest of
Kennesaw MountainKennesaw Mountain is a mountain between Marietta and Kennesaw, Georgia, in the United States with a summit elevation of . It is the highest point in the core metro Atlanta area, and fifth after further-north exurban counties are considered...
, near
Marietta, GeorgiaMarietta is a city located in central Cobb County, Georgia, and is its county seat.As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 58,748, making it one of metro Atlanta's largest suburbs. Census estimates of 2007 indicate a population of 67,021...
. The main participants in the battle were the Union armies under the command of
Maj. Gen.In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general. Major general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the...
William T. Sherman and the
Army of TennesseeThe Army of Tennessee was the principal Confederate army operating between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River during the American Civil War. It was formed in late 1862 and fought until the end of the war in 1865, participating in most of the significant battles in the Western Theater...
under the command of Gen.
Joseph E. JohnstonJoseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.Johnston's effectiveness in the Civil War was undercut...
.
Background
All throughout north Georgia, Sherman had advanced his army southeast along the railroad from
Chattanooga, TennesseeChattanooga is the fourth-largest city in Tennessee , and the seat of Hamilton County. Located in southeastern Tennessee on Chickamauga Lake and Nickajack Lake, which are both part of the Tennessee River, Chattanooga lies approximately 120 miles to the northwest of Atlanta, Georgia, about 135...
, towards
Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the state of Georgia, as well as the urban core of one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the United States....
. Johnston would take up defensive positions, only to retreat whenever Sherman marched his troops around the Confederate army to flank them. At Kennesaw Mountain, Johnston had a massive network of trenches and earthworks prepared to halt the Union advance. This time, when Sherman tried to march his army southwards around Kennesaw, he was met by an attack at
Kolb's farmThe Battle of Kolb's Farm was fought on June 22, 1864, between Union forces under Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker and Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. John B. Hood. Hood attempted an attack on the Union force, but poor terrain conditions led to its failure....
from Confederate troops under the command of Lt. Gen. John B. Hood. Although the Union soldiers turned back Hood's hastily prepared attack, Sherman's army could not flank the Rebel army any further. Muddy roads had become nearly impassable because of a series of June rainstorms. Sherman knew that in these conditions, a march further away from his supply line at the railroad would be too slow. Instead, Sherman believed that Hood's expansion of the southern end of the Confederate line had stretched Johnston's army too thin. The Union general drew up plans for an attack on the middle of the Confederate defenses.
Battle
The Union army began the attack early in the morning with a thunderous artillery barrage on the entrenched Confederates. This was followed up by an infantry attack in three parts: the
Army of the CumberlandThe Army of the Cumberland was one of the principal Union armies in the Western Theater during the American Civil War. It was originally known as the Army of the Ohio.-History:...
under the command of Maj. Gen.
George Henry ThomasGeorge Henry Thomas was a career United States Army officer and a Union General during the American Civil War, one of the principal commanders in the Western Theater....
would lead the main attack on Maj. Gen.
William J. HardeeWilliam Joseph Hardee was a career U.S. Army officer, serving during the Second Seminole War and fighting in the Mexican-American War...
's soldiers in the center; to Thomas's left, the
Army of the TennesseeThe Army of the Tennessee was a Union army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, named for the Tennessee River. It should not be confused with the similarly named Army of Tennessee, a Confederate army named after the State of Tennessee....
under the command of Maj. Gen.
James B. McPhersonJames Birdseye McPherson was a career United States Army officer who served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed at the Battle of Atlanta and was the highest ranking Union officer killed during the conflict.-Early life and career:McPherson was born near...
would lead a secondary attack aimed at the slopes of
Little Kennesaw MountainLittle Kennesaw Mountain is a mountain in Cobb County, Georgia, northwest of Marietta and south of Kennesaw. Located at , its summit stands at 1600 feet or 488 meters above mean sea level....
; and to Thomas's right, the
Army of the OhioThe Army of the Ohio was the name of two Union armies in the American Civil War. The first army became the Army of the Cumberland and the second army was created in 1863.-History:...
under the command of Maj. Gen.
John SchofieldJohn McAllister Schofield was an American soldier who held major commands during the American Civil War. He later served as U.S. Secretary of War and commanding general of the United States Army.-Early life:...
would hold down Hood's corps at the southern end of the line. The fiercest fighting came at a bend near the center of the Confederate line, a place later known as the Dead Angle. Despite repeated attempts to overrun the Confederate defenses, the Union army could not dislodge Johnston's well "dug-in" army.
Aftermath
Estimated casualties were 3,000 for the Union side, and 1,000 for the Confederates. Among the casualties were Union Brig. Gens.
Charles G. HarkerCharles Garrison Harker was a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain in northern Georgia during the Atlanta Campaign...
and
Daniel McCook, Jr.Daniel McCook, Jr. , one of the famed Fighting McCooks, was a brigade commander in the Union Army who was mortally wounded in the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia, during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
, both mortally wounded. Author
Ambrose BierceAmbrose Gwinnett Bierce was an American editorialist, journalist, short story writer, fabulist and satirist. Today, he is best known for his short story, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" and his satirical dictionary, The Devil's Dictionary.The sardonic view of human nature that informed his...
was wounded in the head.
Following the battle, both sides sat at a stalemate. By July 1, the roads had dried out enough for Sherman to continue his flanking movements. Johnston, with the advantage of lookouts on top of Kennesaw Mountain, observed Sherman's movements and again retreated before the Union army could go around him. The next major battle would be the
Battle of Peachtree CreekThe Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought in Georgia on July 20 1864, as part of the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. It was the first major attack by Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's Union army on the defenses of Atlanta. The main armies in the conflict were the Union Army of the...
.
Military historians have claimed that Sherman's attack was a needless waste of lives against a firmly entrenched opponent. Sherman, however, believed that his actions were justifiable, since they showed Johnston that he was not afraid to fight. Whatever the case, Kennesaw Mountain was one of the few victories for the Confederates during the Atlanta Campaign.
The site of the battleground is now part of
Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield ParkKennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, at 905 Kennesaw Mountain Drive between Marietta and Kennesaw, Georgia, preserves a Civil War battleground of the Atlanta Campaign, and also contains Kennesaw Mountain...
, where both Confederate deliberate trenches on top of the mountain and Union hasty rifle-pits are still easily identified by the casual inspection of any visitor.
The first commissioner of
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
,
Judge Kenesaw Mountain LandisKenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922, and subsequently as the first commissioner of organized baseball, including both the American and National leagues and the governing body of minor league baseball, the National Association of...
, was named for Kennesaw Mountain, but using a variant spelling. His father, a physician, fought on the Union side and reportedly nearly lost his leg in the battle.