Brigadier General Montgomery Meigs had served as quartermaster general of the Union army since May 1861. He had arrived in Chattanooga on September 25 while on an inspection tour of supply depots and remained there for much of the siege, advising Rosecrans and then Grant on logistical matters while sending regular reports to Stanton on the overall situation. Meigs would draw on his journal of the battle in preparing a shorter account that he sent to Stanton on November 26. Widely printed in northern newspapers, it would become famous for reporting that the battle for Lookout Mountain “was fought among the clouds.”
JOURNAL OF THE BATTLE OF CHATTANOOGA
Nov. 23d. 24th & 25. 1863.
At noon November 23rd 1863 a demonstration ordered to develope the enemy on Mission Ridge.
Rode to Fort Wood with Grants Head Quarters.
At 2 P.M. skirmishers opened on the rebel pickets all along the line, and drove them in with sharp interchange of musketry.
Our troops advanced steadily in line of battle, and drove the rebels from a long line of rifle-pits, and crowned “Orchard Knob” and the low ridge to the right of it, and formed on that front.
Some two hundred prisoners, I judge, were brought in, some men of course were wounded and some, I fear, killed, though no reports have come in.
Two Alabamians were the first brought in, very much excited and very stupid. Did not know the name of their Brigade Commanders, but said Hindman’s Division, to which they belonged were all here.
At 3½ P.M. Gen. Grant was back in his quarters, writing his despatches.
The Artillery firing from Fort Wood continues—shelling, I suppose the rebel Camps and works on Mission Ridge, and endeavoring to prevent any massing against our troops in the advance.
General Thomas reports to night 169 prisoners, Alabamians, our loss not yet reported.
Bridges both broken “Dunbar” ferrying at Chattanooga—Mule Boat at Brown’s Ferry—Woods Division still waiting to cross at Brown’s Ferry.
Fort Wood Chattanooga
24th November 1863. A.M.
Dropping fire among the pickets in front—Troops resting on their arms since daylight—since I have been here.
Visited the lines and watched the battle from various parts of the field. The principal fighting to day was on the nose of Lookout Mountain which General Hooker carried—He rests to the left of the White House holding the cleared ground.
His Camp fires show to night, and picket firing continues. General Sherman crossed above us, and is established on the south side of the River—expects to carry point of Mission Ridge before he rests for the night.
Howard moved up South Bank of the River and effected a junction with Sherman and returned, leaving him a Brigade and posting another half way. The Dunbar towed up two flats and crossed some 6000 troops during the day. She has been of essential service. Granger, Sheridan and Baird rested in the position seized and fortified yesterday.
The enemy has not to us shown himself in force, except on Lookout, where he resisted Hooker and stood at last checking his advance. His wagons were seen coming down the Summertown Road which looks like abandoning the Mountain.
Letters from my wife and children by Mr. Freas the Carpenter, who arrived during the day.
11 P.M. Point of Lookout Mt. and the N. E. Hill of Mission Ridge are ablaze with Camp fires of Hooker and Sherman. Rest of both Ridges dark. Bright moonlight—clear North wind—General attack or advance ordered for daybreak. Picket firing seems to have ceased—Rebels have probably evacuated.
And now to bed—I have just returned from Gen. Grant’s, Granger will, if the rebels have run, march to-morrow with 20,000 men to relieve Burnside beseiged in Knoxville. Steamer “Paint Rock” will follow him with provisions.
Chattanooga 25th Nov. 1863
Woods Fort 7. A.M.
Sun appeared just above Mission Ridge—Large bodies of troops moving to our left along the summit gaining a position on the high point.
American flag waving from the top of the rock at N. E. end of Lookout Mt. Our troops apparently in possession—no firing.
Clear beautiful morning, smoke and mist hang in the valleys summit clear.
We shall have a battle on Mission Ridge.
Gen. Howard with whom I rode to Woods redoubt parted with me there, and I remained until Mr. C. A. Dana, Asst. Secy. War came up and proposed that we should pay Granger’s Head Quarters a visit.
I told him I was waiting for Genl. Grant, near whom I wished to be during the day. But concluding that we could ride to “Orchard Knob” and return by the time any serious movement would be made—I consented to visit Granger.
We found Gen. Wood—Granger was visiting his lines—Gave him the information that the flag waved on Lookout Crest (From wounded prisoner I have since learned that Stevenson evacuated the Mountain about 1 A.M. the night previous.) This was good news to him—Hooker had orders to move to join in a general advance upon the rebel lines.
We rode to the “Orchard Knob” henceforth historical, and there remained ’till Gen. Grant was seen approaching. The first salutation I had on the Knob was from a Rifled piece—a 10 pdr. on the summit of Mission Ridge opposite, which sent a shell whizzing, exploding and sputtering, and dropping its butt into a hole some fifteen feet in front of the group of Gen. W. F. Smith, Major Dana and myself—An officer who saw it fall, I was not looking up being occupied in reading some letters from home, picked it up and handed it to me.
A battery of these 10 pdrs. rifled fired at the “Knob” all day. Head Quarters remained there ’till about 4 P.M., and every few minutes throughout the day, a shell whizzed past the Knob on which stood Generals Grant, Thomas, Granger, Wood, W. F. Smith, Rawlings myself and a crowd of officers of the Staff. No one was hit near us, however, and it was not until Mission Ridge or part of it was carried that any officer of General Grant’s Staff was hit. Lt. Towner, when dispatched at my request that some officer should be sent back to bring up artillerists to work against the enemy some of the guns captured on the Heights was shot through the back of the neck and shoulder within a minute after leaving us to execute the order—All others escaped.
The day wore on—cannonade at Sherman’s position fortified on the left Knobs of Mission Ridge, and much musketry continued, Orchard Knob replied to the guns on the Ridge, other Batteries to the right joined in the chorus. Woods redoubt with its 30 pdr Parrotts and its 4½″ guns sent shell screaming over us towards the guns on Mission Ridge—Occasionally guns to the right and left of our front on Mission Ridge would open but the only rifled guns seemed to be those directly in front of us, and they alone had range to reach us, and they fired at intervals all day, and we were the conspicuous mark. Occasionally they would drop a shell into our picket, or rather skirmish line, which advanced early in the day, and drove in the rebel pickets.
The day wore away, I was impatient at the delay—night was approaching, and so might be Longstreet, recalled from Burnsides front at Knoxville.
A cannonade at Rossville Gap at last opened, It was of short duration. It was Hooker who had descended the Lookout Mountain and crossed the valley and attacked two Regiments and a section of Artillery guarding the pass. A wagon train loading with flour and the troops and Artillery escaped him and the sound died away.
A line was seen deployed in a cleared field on Sherman’s right—a blue line which went steadily up the steep ascent. Soon another followed in support. How gallant an assault, It is impossible for them to succeed were the exclamations. I watched them with my telescope, an excellent one, saw them pass the fence at the upper edge of the field, enter the oak woods, climb to the edge of the crest of the hill, whose profile is thus: and stop A sputtering musketry fire broke out. The men sought shelter from the deadly fire of the log breast-work above them. I saw the reserve brought up to resist the assault, filling the terrepleine of the entrenchment with a mass of gray. I saw officers leaping into the air and waving their swords urging and calling their rebel soldiers to the front. I saw the reserve fall back again out of fire.
I saw a great body of troops move from a Camp between our front and Sherman and pass steadily along the ride to assist in repelling the assault. I saw the men again urged forward slowly, step, first a few, then more, then the whole body over the breast-works, and advance pouring their fire into our men, who stood fast and returned it.
Then the rebels nearer to us advanced and taking our men crowded under shelter of the hills in flank, poured into them a murderous fire, and the right flank of the group dissolved, and the open field below was filled with men running down the hill. The rebels cast stones from their rifle pits into our men thus wounding some, so near were the two hostile bodies during the half hour or hour that they thus stood in deadly array before the rebel charge.
Our men at last gave way, and fled down the hill and through the field in confusion.
Colonel Putnam, Commanding an Illinois Regiment whom I had noticed, riding a brown horse, leading his men up the slope, difficult for a horse to climb, was shot through the head. A Major who gallantly urged a black charger up the hill, escaped the storm unhurt.
General Grant repeated his order for a general advance, now making it an order that all the troops in sight should advance, drive back the rebel pickets and following them closely, run them into and over their breast-works, which solidly constructed of logs and earth, extended in nearly continuous lines for two miles along the base of the Ridge.
The troops were impatient for work. They were formed; a strong line of skirmishers, a line of battle deployed behind them:—the signal six cannon shots from “Orchard Knob” was given and forward they sprang with a cheer. With a quick step not a run, they crossed the space between us and the breastworks. The rebels fired a volley, our men fired at will, and the rebels swarming out of the rifle-pits covered the lower slopes behind them turned to look at our advance and firing a few shots, again turned and swarmed up the steep roads, which, by oblique ascents led to the summit.
Mission Ridge is 500 feet high its sides nearly denuded of timber cut for Camp fires but still with many oaks upon the slopes.
The order was to form on our side of the breast-works, and then send a regiment or two to wheel to the right and sweep the rebels out of their works and capture as many as possible.
Every gun on Mission Ridge broke out with shell and shrapnell upon the heads of our gallant troops, who never halted till they reached the breastworks.
Most of them halted there; but the colors of three Regiments pushed on and up the slopes of a projecting spur, too steep to be seen from the summit. Mission Ridge is here five hundred feet in height. Slowly the three red silken flags ascended and the regiments swarmed up after them.
General Grant said it was contrary to orders, it was not his plan—he meant to form the lines and then prepare and launch columns of assault, but, as the men; carried away by their enthusiasm had gone so far, he would not order them back.
Presently he gave the order for the whole line, now well formed to advance and storm the ridge. It extended some two miles in length, and it pressed forward with cheers. Shot and shell and cannister poured into it right and left, our guns, 10 pdr rifles, on “Orchard Knob” responded firing into the batteries, exploding a caisson, and disturbing the gunners.
The line ceased to be a line. The men gathered towards the points of least difficult ascent, for very steep is this hill-side, a horse cannot ascend or descend except by the obliquely graded roads. The three colors approach the summit, another mass, gathered gradually into a confused column or stream, at another point directly, in our front, reaches the summit, the color bearer springs forward and plants his flag upon the crest, a gun gallops wildly to the right, cheer upon cheer rings out from actors and spectators. The men swarm up, color after color reaches the summit, and the rebel line is divided and the confused, astonished and terrified rebels fly this way and that to meet enemies, every way but down the rear slope of the ridge and by this open way they mostly escape.
Bragg whose Head Quarters are in a house in plain sight to the right of our front, astonished at our success leaves the house, passing from the porch through and out the back door, mounts his horse and rides down the hill-side. Our men then crowned the summit, and had they known it, could by a volley, have put an end to this traitors career, as he fled down the road.
Still, between Sherman and Baird, whose division made the left assault, remained a mile of fortified ridge, held by the rebels. Fierce musketry broke out on the summit, for the “unpainted house” guns still blazed each way and Gen. Grant determined to go to the summit, and see that proper order was restored.
I rode with him, soon found three brass pieces, a limber and caisson; but no lanyard and no artillery-men—the cartridges near the piece piled at its wheel were round shot—I directed some of the men lying down behind the rebel breastwork looking to see Bairds line formed across the ridge and hotly engaged give way, while still from the right, at the unpainted house, the cannon blazed,—to bring the limber and caissons behind the breastworks, had the chests examined, found friction tubes and shell, but no lanyard with which to discharge them. An ordnance officer heard me asking for primers and said he had some in his saddle bags. He always carried them and sometimes found them very useful.
The suspension hook from my own and a Captains sword-belt, we wrenched off for hooks, a piece of bed cord, which I found on the ground, completed the Lanyard, and the guns were turned into a battery and ready for use. Gen. Baird spoke to me. I asked Gen. Grant to send back for artillerists and lanyards, and he sent Lt. Towner, who was wounded as he left us.
Gen. Baird requested me to ride with him to the left, now the front, where the musketry roared and raged. We spoke to every officer, many men, wild with excitement—color bearers seeking their Colonels and men their colors—urged the necessity of forming the men at once and that Bragg’s army might still by a charge sweep us from the Ridge. Got a line formed across the ridge in the rear of the one so hotly engaged. Set the men to carrying the logs of the rebel-breastworks to the rear edge of the narrow summit, and to forming barricades of timber across the summit. Rode up to the front line and finding that the answer from the part of the hill in rebel possession was dying out, stopped the firing, ordered a breastwork and that the men should lie down behind it, and not fire unless attacked. Ordered a discreet officer and a patrol to be sent out to ascertain what was in front, and finding order being restored and troops regularly organized into bodies which could be handled, marching into position, as it became dark, I, with Gen. Wilson of the Engrs, who had joined me, bade Baird good-night, and rode to my tent.
It was dark as we turned away—the moon just then showed her face above the range, and late I reached my tent—ate a hearty supper and went to Hd Qrs to hear the result.
Hooker came in, reported that we had captured 2000 prisoners on Lookout and 1000 on Mission Ridge, and that Johnson’s Division had captured a thousand.
Four thousand to Five thousand prisoners, thirty five guns and many small arms are the trophies. The substantial results are not yet known. Burnside will be relieved at once. Two steam boats arrived at our wharf from Bridgeport during the fight, Hooker having raised the blockade yesterday.
Bragg with a beaten and discontented army in full retreat, burning and destroying behind him. Invasion of Kentucky and Tennessee indefinitely postponed.
The Slave aristocracy broken down. The grandest stroke yet struck for our country.
Our loss is small considering the exploit. The storming of a steep hill five hundred feet high on a front of two miles, every where doubly entrenched by a line of troops which soon lost their formation and streamed upward, aggregating into channels as a sheet of water would have done in descending the same hill. It is unexampled—Another laurel leaf is added to Grant’s Crown.
M C MEIGS
Q M Gn
U S A