Battle of Resaca
Resaca, Gordon County, Georgia
Marker Inscription
Battle of Resaca. May 16, 1864. Johnston's forces, [CSA] withdrew from Resaca via pontoon, R. R. & trestle bridges over the Oostanaula River. The 4th & two divs. of the 14th Corps [USA] rebuilt 2 bridges which had been burned & followed the retreating Confederates S., along R. R. and highway. Davis' ( 2d ) Div., 14th A. C. [USA] moved W. of R. to Rome. The 20th & two divs. of 23d A.C. [USA] moved E. to Fites Ferry, Conasauga R., enroute to Coosawattee R. crossings - McClure's Ferry & the one at Fields Mill. Army of the Tenn. [USA] crossed Oostanaula R. at Lay's Ferry near Snake Cr., 6 mi. S.W. 064-11 GEORGIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION 1953
Erected by Georgia Historical Commission
The Story
On May 16, 1864, Gen. Johnston's Confederate army slipped across the Oostanaula River on pontoon and railroad bridges, ending the Battle of Resaca. Union forces rebuilt the burned bridges and pursued southward while other columns fanned out toward Rome and the Coosawattee crossings, and the Army of the Tennessee forded the river downstream at Lay's Ferry.
Why it matters
The Confederate withdrawal from Resaca set the pattern for the entire Atlanta Campaign—entrench, resist, then retreat—as Sherman steadily pressed toward the vital rail hub.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In the middle of May 1864, the opening battle of the Atlanta Campaign was reaching its close near the rail town of Resaca, Georgia. Sherman's Union armies had pressed south from Chattanooga with Atlanta as their goal, and the fighting here along the Oostanaula River was the first great test of that drive.
The landscape was defined by rivers and rails. Resaca sat where the railroad and the roads crossed the Oostanaula, and rivers like this one were both shields and traps for an army — hard to cross under fire, but also barriers that could be used to break contact and slip away. Bridges, fords, and ferries became the pivots on which whole movements turned.
That is the situation this marker captures: not the clash of the battle itself, but the delicate and dangerous business of disengaging. On May 16, 1864, the Confederate army had to pull back across the river while a larger, aggressive enemy pressed close behind — one of the most difficult maneuvers in war.
People & events
On May 16, 1864, Joseph E. Johnston withdrew his Confederate forces from Resaca, moving them south across the Oostanaula River on pontoon, railroad, and trestle bridges. Getting an entire army over a river in good order, without being caught mid-crossing, demanded careful timing and discipline, and the burning of bridges behind them was meant to buy time against pursuit.
The Union response was immediate and methodical. Federal troops rebuilt two of the burned bridges and pushed south along the railroad and highway, keeping the pressure on the retreating column. This was the pursuit phase, when an army tries to turn an enemy's orderly retreat into a rout.
Sherman also spread his forces wide to keep Johnston from settling into another strong position. One division under Jefferson C. Davis moved west toward Rome, other columns pushed east toward river crossings on the Conasauga and Coosawattee, and the Army of the Tennessee forded the Oostanaula downstream at Lay's Ferry. Together these converging moves show an army fanning out across the countryside, probing every crossing to stay on the heels of a withdrawing foe.
Its place in the American story
The withdrawal from Resaca established the rhythm that would define the entire Atlanta Campaign: the Confederates would entrench and resist, then slip away to the next defensible line before Sherman could pin them or turn their flank. This marker records one of the first turns of that cycle, and it repeated across north Georgia through the summer.
That pattern reveals the strategic bind the Confederacy faced. Johnston could fight skillful defensive actions and preserve his army, but each careful retreat surrendered more ground and drew Sherman closer to Atlanta. Trading space to save the army was sound soldiering, yet space was exactly what the South could least afford to give near so vital a city.
Sherman's habit of spreading columns toward multiple crossings — as he did here, reaching for Rome, the Coosawattee, and Lay's Ferry — shows the relentless, maneuver-driven pressure that eventually forced the issue. The road that led to Atlanta's fall later that year, and to all that followed for the nation, ran straight through crossings like these.
If you visit
At this marker, think about rivers and bridges rather than trenches. The story here is one of crossing and pursuit — an army getting itself over the Oostanaula and burning the spans behind it, and another rebuilding them and pressing on. Orienting yourself toward the river helps the inscription come alive.
The many place names — Rome to the west, the Conasauga and Coosawattee crossings to the east, Lay's Ferry downstream — are worth noticing, because they show how widely an army spreads when it is chasing a retreating enemy. You are standing at one point in a movement that reached across a broad stretch of countryside.
As part of a road trip, this stop pairs well with the earlier Resaca sites, letting you trace the arc from the battle's opening to the Confederate withdrawal. Follow the general line of the pursuit southward and you'll be tracing the same direction the whole campaign was about to take.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
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Related people
- · Joseph E. Johnston
- · Jefferson C. Davis
Related events
- · Battle of Resaca
- · Atlanta Campaign
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Battle of Resaca
Gordon County, GA
During the Battle of Resaca on May 13–14, 1864, Union corps deployed along ridges west of Camp Creek opposite Leonidas Polk's Confederate corps. On May 14 the Federals drove Polk's men across the creek and, by evening, carried and held his new position on the hills beyond, forcing Polk to fall back toward the Dalton–Resaca road.
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On May 13–15, 1864, the opening major clash of the Atlanta Campaign unfolded near Resaca, where Confederate lines north and west of town held firm against Federal attacks. Unable to break the position by assault, Sherman executed a flanking movement to the west and south that rendered Johnston's line untenable. The Confederates were compelled to fall back deeper into Georgia, setting the campaign's pattern.
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