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The Final Struggle Begins
Just before 2pm on November 23, 1863, Southern soldiers were alarmed by what unfolded before them. On the outskirts of Fort Wood and Chattanooga, upward of 20,000 Union soldiers formed in dense lines opposite just 600 Confederates stationed where you now stand.
Suddenly, the rat-a-tat-tat of drums, the blare of bugles, and the yell of officers cut through the silent afternoon.
The mass of men surged forward in one grand motion. Like a great blue wave, Union soldiers crashed around the knob, sending its Confederate defenders scurrying toward Missionary Ridge (to your rear).
As the sun sank below the horizon, the first of three days of desperate fighting ended with the Stars and Stripes waving triumphantly over Orchard Knob. |