Snodgrass Hill

Snodgrass Hill
(National Archives)

The last day of the Battle of Chickamauga saw Union forces splinter due to many critical errors that had occurred over the previous days. As the Army of the Cumberland retreated north towards Chattanooga, General George Henry Thomas gathered his men with small pieces of other divisions to hold Snodgrass Hill in an effort to allow the rest of the army to retreat in an orderly manner. For several hours on September 20, 1863, these men held Snodgrass Hill in what was some of the most vicious of the Civil War. 

The Confederates, attempting to route the remnants of the Union army, sent wave upon wave of men up Snodgrass Hill, trying to dislodge the last few guardians standing between the enemy and the now-retreating Union. Reports number the casualties at over one thousand confederate men during the first hour of fighting alone. The Union, on the other side, were running low on ammunition to the point that they were scavenging the dead and wounded near them for more ammunition to fire. Nearly all of their supplies were running low after several days of intense fighting. 

Yet still the Union soldiers held their line, and the hill, keeping the Confederate soldiers at bay. General Thomas rode up and down the line behind his men yelling encouragements and standing strong, eventually earning him the nickname “The Rock of Chickamauga.” Late that afternoon, Thomas received orders from Rosecrans to retreat. As twilight began to fall and the fighting lulled, the Union troops finally retreated and joined the Army of the Cumberland several miles north in Chattanooga. 

Union retreat opened the hill up for Confederate control for the first time in the entire battle. At that point, though, what was left of the Union army was safe. Not only did Thomas’ stand at Snodgrass Hill earn him a new nickname, it also prevented a total Union disaster and saved the Army of the Cumberland from being completely crushed. 

Author: Haley Thistlethwaite, February 9, 2015
Further Reading:
Steve Parrish, “Snodgrass Hill – Chickamauga,” Henry County Historical Group: Preserving Our History, 2012, www.hchg.org/military/77-snodgrass-hill-chickamauaga

Steven E. Woodworth, Chickamauga: A Battlefield Guide. Bison Books, 1999.