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Georgia Natural Wonder #261 - Leggett's Hill - DeKalb Co. (Part 11)***
#1
Battle of Leggett’s Hill

Hood on the night of July 21 sent Hardee's Corps and Wheeler's cavalry swinging around that flank with orders to march to Decatur, then in the morning to pounce on McPherson from the rear, routing his forces and opening the way for Cheatham's troops to join with Hardee's and Wheeler's in doing the same to the rest of the Union army east of Atlanta.


https://ec.yimg.com/ec?url=http%3a%2f%2f...nXlFYw--~B Wheeler Delays Blair Marker is at the intersection of Hosea L WIlliams Dr SE and Clay St NE, on the left when traveling west on Hosea L WIlliams Dr SE.


NEAR ATLANTA, July 21, 1864.
Honorable J. A. SEDDON, Richmond, Va.:


This morning the enemy attacked Cleburne's division, of Hardee's corps, and a portion of General Wheeler's cavalry, upon our extreme right, but were handsomely repulsed. Colonel Adams, Thirty-third Alabama, was killed.

J. B. HOOD.

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https://ec.yimg.com/ec?url=http%3a%2f%2f...GfYOEA--~B Wheeler's Cav. Intrenched Marker use to be at the intersection of Moreland Avenue and Interstate 20, on the right when traveling south on Moreland Avenue.



IN THE FIELD, July 21, 1864-3 p. m.
Major-General SHERMAN, Commanding:


GENERAL: Brigadier-General Leggett, commanding Third Division, Seventeenth Army Corps, advanced his lines and captured a hill, quite a commanding position, this forenoon; also, some 60 prisoners, principally from Cleburne's division. General Leggett is on my extreme left. The Fourth Division (late Gresham's) made a demonstration at the same time in favor of Leggett, and the loss in the two divisions is between 260 and 300 killed and wounded. The hill is two and a quarter miles from Atlanta, and a portion of the enemy's works around the town are in view. The enemy made one vigorous and two feeble attempts to recapture the hill, but were signally repulsed. Since that time he has been moving troops in the direction of our left. General Leggett reports having seen at least ten regiments of infantry passing in that direction. I have strengthened that portion of the line with all the available troops I have got, and I will simply remark in closing, that I have no cavalry as a body of observation on my flank, and that the whole rebel army, except Georgia militia, is not in front of the Army of the Cumberland.


Very respectfully, your obedient servant, JAS. B. McPHERSON,Major-General.


The Rebels were in position to flank McPherson. This was McPherson's last report, he dies tomorrow. The Union troops had moved into position east of Atlanta for tomorrow's action……

The main lines of battle now formed an "L" shape, with Hardee's attack forming the lower part of the "L" and Cheatham's attack on the Union front as the vertical member of the "L". Hood intended to attack the Union troops from both east and west. The fighting centered around the hill now located at I-20 and Moreland Avenue east of the city known as Bald (Leggett's ) Hill. The Federals had arrived two days earlier there and began to shell the city proper, killing several civilians. A savage struggle, sometimes hand-to-hand, developed around the hill. 


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Hardee continued to assault the bald hill with both infantry and artillery until after it was dark, but to no avail as its defenders held on grimly. (The hill became known as Leggett's Hill after the commander of the XVII Corps division that defended it, Brigadier General Mortimer Leggett, who after the war purchased it.) The Federals held the hill while the Confederates retired to a point just south of there.

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Leggett's Hill - July 22, 1864. Blair's 17th A.C., McPherson's Army of the Tenn. (US) was aligned S. of Logan's 15th astride the Ga. R.R. Leggett's div. of the 17th held the line from Logan's left, to & including the hill. An extension S.E. on Flat Shoals Rd. to Glenwood was occupied by the other division of the 17th A.C., under Giles Smith. Smith's div., outflanked by Cleburne's troops, was driven to the S. slope of Leggett's Hill. This was followed by concerted attacks on front, flank & rear by Cleburne's & Maney's div. (Hardee's A.C.), together with Stevenson's (Cheatham's A.C.) (CS) - a battle regarded as the major engagement of the Atlanta Campaign.

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Tangent on Leggett's Hill Battle…..
http://www.aboutnorthgeorgia.com/images/...a2.jpgFrom Confederate defense looking across way to Leggett’s Hill.



http://www.civil-war-tribute.com/Leggett...Dormer.jpg    http://image1.findagrave.com/photos/2008...731807.jpg

Mortimer Leggett                                                        Giles Smith

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_IlLjSCl62J8/Ss...atcleb.gif http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en..._Maney.jpg

Patrick Cleburne                                                              George Maney



General Blair´s plan was to attack at dawn, but due to an injury to Brig. Gen. Walter Q. Gresham command fell to Brig. Gen. Giles A. Smith. The order to attack reached General Leggett at about 8:00 a.m. The First Brigade, commanded by Brig. Gen. Manning F. Force, was in front of Bald Hill. The 12th Wisconsin and the 16th Wisconsin regiments were in the front line with the 12th on the right. The 3 Illinois regiments of the Brigade would follow the two regiments from Wisconsin. As the Brigade emerged from the woods, they were met by a murderous fire. They not only faced the rifle fire of the infantry defending the hill, but from two batteries from Arkansas and Mississippi that opened fire from their flank. General Blair order them men down and then for them to fix bayonets. He the ordered them back up and to continue the assault. The confederate Calvary on the hill fled and the Union Brigade was able to reach the top of Bald Hill and gain the confederate breastworks. On the confederate left, General James A. Smith´s Brigade held their place and hand to hand combat ensued. 

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With Cleburne´s Division in place, Wheeler was ordered to extend his line to the right to face the 1st Brigade of Col. Robert K. Scott. It was just as Wheelers men were moving that the Union forces attacked. Cleburne's men had spent the night reinforcing the hilltop position, but are unable to stop the Union assault. The Confederates withdraw slightly, then spend most of the rest of the day unsuccessfully attempting to retake the hill. Smith´s Brigade attempted to retake the hill and were able to temporarily gain 200 yards of breastworks on the hill, but they were forced to retreat before the rest of Cleburne´s Division could re-enforce them. 

With Union forces on the hill, Captain Gay´s 1st Iowa battery could no longer fire towards the northern slope of Bald Hill. The confederates took advantage of this and assaulted General Force´s right flank. The 20th Illinois found themselves in a crossfire from confederate forces attacking from the north and others firing from the shelter of trees north west of the hill.

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To secure the right flank, General Blair ordered the 4th Division, commanded by Brigadier General Giles A. Smith, forward. The Division moved forward with the 1st Brigade commanded by Col. Benjamin F. Potts on the right (North) and the 3rd Brigade commanded by Col. William Hall on the left (south). The 3rd Brigade was aligned with the 15th Iowa on the left and the 13th Iowa on the right with the 11th and 16th Iowa in support. At first the terrain protected the Iowa men from the confederate defenders, but this changed as the approached the right of General Force´s position. They were as they reached the spine of the ridge they were met with a devastating barrage of musketry and artillery fire. The Iowans were forced to drop to the ground and fire from a prone position.


https://ec.yimg.com/ec?url=http%3a%2f%2f...VJU6mA--~B Leggett's Hill late 1800's.

To the north of Hall´s 3rd Brigade, Col. Potts 1st Brigade advanced with no support on their right flank was unable to advance. The Brigade retreated back to the protection of their earthwork. With the 1st Brigade falling back, now the 3rd Brigade right was exposed to a withering fire. By 8:45, the 13th Iowa´s, commanded by Col. Shanes, position on the right of the Brigade was deemed untenable and permission was given for them to also retreat. During the aborted attempt of the 4th Division, General Leggett was able to shift his right and to fire obliquely on Cleburne´s men. Battery H of the 1st Michigan Light Artillery, commanded by Captain Marcus D. Elliott, known as the "Black Horse Battery" due to the jet black horses that pulled the black Rodman cannon, was able to reach the top of Bald Hill. The battery soon opened fire on the confederates. With the 4th Division no longer on the right, Captain Gay´s 1st Iowa battery could now also fire. This ended the major action at bald Hill. 

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With the loss of the high ground, it was feared that General McPherson might advance the entire Army of the Tennessee toward Atlanta. To help support Cleburne´s forces, General Hood sent Brigadier General George Maney´s Division to the right of Cleburne. While the struggle for Bald Hill was taking place, General Scott´s Second Brigade had moved unopposed to the south of the hill. In the afternoon general Blair shifted the 4th Division under Giles Smith to the south of the hill, eventually extending the union left a half mile south of the hill. The 1st Brigade command by Potts, tied in with Leggett´s left. The 3rd Brigade formed the left of the Army of the Tennessee. In honor of his men's heroics, the hilltop is renamed Leggett's Hill, which the area still bears on some maps today. The Union capture and hold of that hill was the critical element to the Union victory in that battle. Atlanta has often been blasted in historical preservation circles as unfriendly at best to the preservation of the past, but the destruction of not only the majority of an entire battlefield but the central and most important element of it, and even the very hill it took place on is especially painful for those trying to retrace the Civil War campaigns here! Leggett's Hill, was nearly entirely removed during construction of I-20 east of downtown. Union Maj. Gen. Francis Blair's total military experience consisted of being the son Lincoln's Postmaster General. He proved to be one of the few "political generals" who actually had some talent for the job as his men today defeated renown Southern artillerist Patrick Cleburne. From the top of this hill by the end of the day, Blair and his men looked down on the city of Atlanta. 

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Multiple Congressional Medals of Honor given for this battle.

Manning Force led his brigade in a desperate defense of his critical position on Bald Hill (soon to be renamed Leggett's Hill). While standing on the front line at the top of the hill, a minie bullet smashed into his face below the left eye, shattered his palate, passed behind his right eye, and exited from the upper right side of his skull. His wound at first was believed to be mortal, and so Manning was sent home to die. However, Force miraculously survived his wound, though he was scarred for life. He returned to active duty on October 22, 1864, and Sherman promoted Force to Brevet Major General for his bravery at Atlanta. In 1892, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his successful defense of Leggett's Hill. His Medal of Honor citation reads: "Charged upon the works, and after their capture defended his position against assaults of the enemy until he was severely wounded"


https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e...jpgManning Force


Leggett's Hill "In this charge, the color bearer of the 78th was killed. Before the colors touched the ground, they were seized and borne by Pvt. Sean Elliott, of Company F of the 20th. In a moment he was killed. His brother,(Robert Elliott)of the same Company, snatched them from falling. He, too, was at once killed, and then Private John Morris, also of the same Company, took the colors and brought them safely back to the works." All three awarded.


https://ec.yimg.com/ec?url=http%3a%2f%2f...XA--~BFrom Confederate defense looking across way to Leggett's Hill.

Milton L. Haney was the Chaplain of the 55th Illinois Infantry. He voluntarily carried a musket in the ranks of his regiment and rendered heroic service in retaking the Federal works which had been captured by the enemy.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e..._haney.jpg Milton Haney.


Charles F. Sancrainte for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Voluntarily scaled the enemy's breastworks and signaled to his commanding officer in charge; also in single combat captured the colors of the 5th Texas Regiment (C.S.A.).


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