Battle of Jonesborough

Battle of Jonesborough
Part of the American Civil War
Ruins of rolling mill and railroad cars destroyed by Confederates on evacuation of Atlanta, Georgia
Date August 31, 1864 (1864-08-31) – September 1, 1864 (1864-09-01) Location Clayton County, Georgia 33°31′51″N 84°21′44″W / 33.5307°N 84.3621°W / 33.5307; -84.3621 Result Union victory[note 1]
Belligerents
United States (Union)	Confederate States
Commanders and leaders
William T. Sherman Oliver Otis Howard George H. Thomas	John Bell Hood William J. Hardee Stephen D. Lee
Units involved
Army of the Tennessee Army of the Cumberland	Army of Tennessee
Strength
Campaign: 85,000 Aug. 31: 14,170–19,500 Sept. 1: 20,460[note 2]	Campaign: 55,000 Aug. 31: 20,000–23,811 Sept. 1: 12,000–12,661
Casualties and losses
Aug. 31: 172–179 Sept. 1: 1,272–1,274	Aug. 31: 1,700–2,200 Sept. 1: 1,400, 8 guns
Jonesborough class=notpageimage| Location of Jonesborough in Georgia

The Battle of Jonesborough (August 31–September 1, 1864) was fought between Union Army forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate forces under William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. On the first day, on orders from Army of Tennessee commander John Bell Hood, Hardee's troops attacked the Federals and were repulsed with heavy losses. That evening, Hood ordered Hardee to send half his troops back to Atlanta. On the second day, five Union corps converged on Jonesborough (modern name: Jonesboro). For the only time during the Atlanta Campaign, a major Federal frontal assault succeeded in breaching the Confederate defenses. The attack took 900 prisoners, but the defenders were able to halt the breakthrough and improvise new defenses. Despite facing overwhelming odds, Hardee's corps escaped undetected to the south that evening.

Thwarted in his earlier attempts to force Hood to abandon Atlanta, Sherman resolved to make a sweep to the south with six of his seven infantry corps. His objective was to block the Macon and Western Railroad which was the last uncut railroad leading into Atlanta. Three corps from Sherman's army got within artillery range of the railroad at Jonesborough and Hood reacted by sending two of his three infantry corps to drive them away. While the fighting at Jonesborough was going on, two more Union corps blocked the railroad on August 31. When Hood found that Atlanta's railroad lifeline was severed, he evacuated the city on the evening of September 1. Atlanta was occupied by Union troops the next day and the Atlanta campaign was concluded. Although Hood's army was not destroyed, the fall of Atlanta had far-reaching political as well as military effects on the course of the war.
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