Key Facts
- Dates
- August 5–7, 1864
- Campaign
- Atlanta Campaign, American Civil War
- Union commander
- Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman
- Confederate commander
- General John Bell Hood
- Strategic objective
- Cut Confederate railroad supply lines into Atlanta
Strategic Narrative Overview
Having partially encircled Atlanta, Sherman launched a series of direct attacks on Confederate defensive positions. The Battle of Utoy Creek, fought August 5–7, 1864, was the third such assault. Union forces targeted Confederate lines near Utoy Creek in Fulton County, Georgia, attempting to press the encirclement and cut off remaining rail connections feeding Hood's army inside Atlanta.
01 / The Origins
By the summer of 1864, Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman was driving his armies through Georgia toward Atlanta, a critical Confederate industrial and rail hub. Confederate General John Bell Hood's forces defended the city. Sherman, unable to take Atlanta by direct assault, shifted to a strategy of severing the railroad lines supplying the Confederate garrison, seeking to starve the defenders into abandoning the city.
03 / The Outcome
The source does not detail the specific outcome of the battle. It formed part of the broader Atlanta Campaign pressure that ultimately compelled Hood to evacuate Atlanta in early September 1864, allowing Sherman to occupy the city. The fall of Atlanta boosted Northern morale and had significant political consequences ahead of the 1864 U.S. presidential election.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
William T. Sherman.
Side B
1 belligerent
John Bell Hood.
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.