Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-03-29
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SIXTY YEARS AGO

~ UR younger Georgians are reading
| J books that are diffuse on Roman and
- Grecian wars. Yet they have little
real knowledge of battles on Georgia soil
that were fought only sixty years ago. The
battle of Chickamauga was fought in Sep
TENDER, 1863. This was followed by the re
treat Of Federal troops to Chattanooga,
Tenn. Later came the battle of Lookout
Mountain, and this Confederate disaster
caused the retirement Of General Bragg and
the Confederate army under General Joe
Johnston retreated to Dalton, and this all
took place only sixty years ago. People
cross the Atlantic ocean and traverse Europe
to visit later battlefelds and desolated sec
tons, and nobody seems to be much interest
ed either in Chickamauga or Lookout
Mountain battlefelds, or what happened to
their own sort of folks here in old Georgia
sixty years ago, with face to face soldiers,
all shooting to kiIl-peOple of their own sort
and color, in deadly carnage.
Never can I forget the intense anxiety of
our people in this Cherokee section when
General Bragg left Chattanooga and came
down into McLemore's cove, and Walker
county filled with soldiers camp fol-
lowers and raiders and spies and everything
else that goes along with war, and the
slaughter of human beings as the final ar
bitrament of human passion and hatred, with
minnie balls and belching cannon Down
here at Emerson, four miles from my town,
then known as Stegalls Station, a dreadful
"A
engineer mistook his orders, and a train
filled with Confederate soldiers belonging
to General LonSstreets army corps, their
way to Chickamauga, wrecked, head-on
collision.
Eighteen dead men were lifted out Of the
crushed cars, and the many wounded were
brought to Gainesville to be treated or
cared for in death. Cherokee Georgia was
sore distressed at the prospect of being run
over by the Federals. General Lee sent
General Longstreet to reinforce and save
Braggs army from capture. And the vet
eran soldier did save the day! The Georgia
and Richmond papers had boX-car letter
headlines, 'Longstreets Five Brigades Saved
the Day."
Just as rapidly as the Western and At
lantic railroad could transport those five
brigades they were pushed on to Rnggold,
where they left the railroad and quick
stepped the intervening distance to the Sc
lected battlefield known now as the Chick
amauga Park. At that particular time, Gen
eral John Morgan was giving serious trouble
to the Federal forces, diversion to as
S1St General Bragg'S army. General Nor
gan command was captured and the great
majority were carried to Cincinnati and later
to Columbus, Ohio. When General Bragg
abandoned Chattanooga line of battle was
formed in Walker county, taking in Lee and
Gordon's mill, and it soon became evident
the Federals were preparing to make a dash
toward Rome. General Hindman and Cen
eral D. H. Hill got in quarrel, Hill refus-
ing to cooperate with Hindman.
On the 18th of September General Bragg
called council of war, and it was decided
to turn nOrthward and attack Chattanooga.
On the 18th Bragg moved his army by di-
visions, north from Lee and Gordons mills
General Longstreet reached Ringgold that