Allatoona Pass
Formidable
| | Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails | |
The first episode happened on Saturday, April 12, 1862. Federal soldiers, dressed as civilians and led by civilian James Andrews, stole a locomotive, the “General," at Big Shanty (present-day Kennesaw), Georgia, and drove it toward Chattanooga. Known as “Andrews' Raid,” or “The Great Locomotive Chase." the “raiders” endeavored to pull-up rails, burn bridges and disrupt Confederate telegraph communications as they continued north. At Allatoona another railroad crew, stopped with their train on a sidetrack, looked-on suspiciously as the “General" passed-by. Unaware of what was happening they did not try to stop the raiders. Hotly pursued by other Confederates, Andrews' raiders were captured just north of Ringgold.
Two years later, on Friday, May 20, 1864, Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston's army was retreating south roughly parallel to the railroad, preparing to defend Allatoona Pass. Johnston hoped Union Major General William T. Sherman's armies would attack his army in this stronghold. Yet Sherman, who had worked in the region as a young army lieutenant twenty years earlier, knew about the pass. “I therefore knew that the Allatoona Pass was very strong, would be hard to force, and resolved not even to attempt it,” Sherman wrote in his memoirs. He decided “to turn the position, by moving from Kingston to Marietta via Dallas.” The flanking of Allatoona Pass to Dallas, about fifteen miles southwest, is what Colonel Robert N. Adams, 81st Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, considered "one of the most adroit and daring movements of the [Atlanta] campaign.” During the fighting around Dallas, Federal cavalry captured Allatoona Pass unopposed on June 1st. Johnston's army eventually retreated east from Dallas toward Marietta. Sherman's armies returned to their railroad "lifeline” and Allatoona Pass became their fortified forward supply base.
After Atlanta was captured in September 1864 the
Confederate army moved north, hoping their actions
against General Sherman's railroad lifeline would force
him to abandon Atlanta. On Wednesday, October
5th at Allatoona Pass, Confederate
Major General Samuel G. French urged the Federal
garrison commander to surrender, Brigadier General
John M. Corse. Determined
to hold his fortifications, two
redoubts encircling a “star”
fort on a 175-foot-high
embankment, Corse refused.
Over 3,200 Confederates attacked, driving about
2,000 Federals into the star
fort, but no further. French
soon retreated, suffering 897
casualties versus 706 Federal
losses. Union Second
Lieutenant J. Q. Adams, a
signal officer during the battle,
wrote “the loss of the million and
a half of rations...would have
been a great disaster.” Allatoona
Pass, which Sherman called
“one of those formidable (places), which give an army on
the defensive so much advantage” remained under
Federal control. The railroad was relocated in the 1940s
prior to the creation of Lake Allatoona.
Erected 2019
this page online
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Railroads & Streetcars • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Georgia Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical date for this entry is April 12, 1862.
Location. 34° 6.804′ N, 84° 42.885′ W. Marker is in Allatoona, Georgia, in Bartow County. It is on Old Allatoona Road SE 2.9 miles east of Interstate 75. Located at the Allatoona Pass Battlefield parking lot. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 632 Old Allatoona Road SE, Cartersville GA 30121, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Georgia’s Mountains. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At
Regarding Allatoona Pass. This marker is along the "historic driving route" of the Atlanta Campaign Heritage Trail.
Also see . . .
1. Wikipedia article on the Battle of Allatoona. (Submitted on November 24, 2019, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)
2. Sherman's neckties. (Submitted on July 31, 2024, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on August 1, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 24, 2019, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,334 times since then and 100 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 24, 2019, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 5, 6. submitted on July 31, 2024, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee.
