Atlanta Campaign
The 61st Ohio spent the winter of 1864 at Bridgeport, Alabama. During this time the 11th and 12th Corps were combined into the 20th Corps and Major General Joseph Hooker was named commander of the new corps. The 61st was placed in the 3rd Brigade (under Colonel James Robinson), 1st Division (under Brigadier General Alpheus Williams. In February 283 officers and enlisted men of the 61st re-enlisted and the men received a furlough. On April 28, 1864 the veterans reassembled near Cincinnati at Camp Dennison and were joined by 35 new recruits. The 61st returned to Chattanooga where it rejoined the 20th Corps on May 5.
On May 7 the 20th Corps and the rest of Major General William T. Sherman's force began advancing against the Confederate Army of Tennessee in northwest Georgia. On May 14 and 15 the 61st participated in the battle at Resaca, ninety miles north of Atlanta. The 61st and Williams' division was held in reserve during the day on May 14. That evening the division was shifted to the left flank of the Union line where the 4th Corps was under attack. When Williams' division reached a ridge on the left flank they found the 4th Corps retreating in the valley before them, leaving the Fifth Indiana Battery of the 4th Corps unsupported. Williams immediately ordered Robinson to save the battery, which was nearly overrun by the rebels. The 61st and the 3rd Brigade charged into the valley and caught the Confederates by surprise. After about fifteen minutes of fighting the Confederates retreated and the Union line was restored. The next day the 61st and its division remained on the left flank. That afternoon four brigades from Alabama and Georgia made three charges against the 1st Division and each time the rebels were repulsed.
That night the Confederates retreated and the next day the 61st and the Union forces began pursuing them. On May 25 the Confederates made a stand at New Hope Church near Dallas, Georgia. Hooker's corps led the attack with Robinson's brigade in the lead. The 61st was deployed as skirmishers in advance as the Federals attacked in the late afternoon. Waiting for the yankees behind logs and rocks as well as tombstones in the nearby cemetery were the rebel divisions of Generals A.P. Stewart and Carter Stevenson. Advancing through a woods the 61st and Robinson's brigade met a hail of lead. The Federals took shelter behind trees and began exchanging fire with the enemy. Robinson's brigade wasn't able to advance any further and so, after expanding its ammunition, the brigade was relieved. The 61st lost 7 men killed and 23 wounded during this brief fight.
The 61st remained in reserve during the rest of the fighting around Dallas and did not participate in another major engagement again for almost a month. However, because of the close contact between the two armies, there was always skirmishing between the pickets which was just as dangerous as Corporal Daniel Fishel of Company A, related during the Atlanta Campaign. Writing home to a friend in Tiffin, Ohio, Fishel stated that "We had one man shot dead yesterday in relieving the pickets. The rebs take all advantage of this sort." But despite the dangers, or perhaps because of the dangers, the men still kept their sense of humor. Fishel continued by writing that "Last night our picket boys called out to the reb pickets to come over and see Joe Hooker and get a cracker. They said Hooker was not there. He could not be everywhere. 'Yes Johnny, come over. Hooker is not one mile from here.' They dread Hooker worst the we did Stonewall Jackson."
The Sherman's force continued pursuing the Confederates until the middle of June when the Federals reached Kennesaw Mountain, where the Confederates were dug in. The 61st and its division were positioned at Kolb's Farm, near the base of the mountain. On the afternoon of June 22 the Confederates attacked the Union lines. Firing from behind breastworks of logs and fence rails the 61st helped to repulse the Confederate attack. Colonel McGroarty then led the 61st in a counterattack against the rebels that evening. However the regiment advanced too far and was almost cut off from the Union lines by a Confederate regiment. On their way back to the Union lines the 61st ran into the rebels and in the darkness confusion reigned. The 61st managed to capture a number of prisoners with Colonel McGroarty helping to bring in 17 himself. Private George Harris of Company B, who became seperated from his unit, captured three rebels by himself by making them think that he was in command of a squad. However, this action was not without its cost. Major David C. Beckett was killed during the counterattack of the 61st and the regiment had seven other men wounded. The 61st rested in reserve for the rest of the battle as the Federals attacked the Confederate positions on Kennesaw Mountain.
On July 2 the Confederates retreated from Kennesaw Mountain and the next day the Union force followed. On July 20 the Federals reached Peachtree Creek outside of Atlanta. Here the rebels attacked. The 61st and Robinson's brigade were on the right flank of the Union line but were isolated from the rest of the Federal line by woods on both the right and left flanks. On the afternoon of July 20 a Confederate division under Major General Edward Walthall attempted to drive through the gaps in the Union line on Robinson's flanks. The 61st soon found itself in one of its most desperate fights of the war as the rebels reached the Federal lines and hand to hand fighting broke out. The 61st remained in the front line of Robinson's brigade until it was relieved to receive more ammunition. After a brief respite to get resupplied, the 61st returned to the front lines. The Confederates severely pressed Robinson's line but could not break through eventually the rebels retreated back to their lines.
After the battle a member of the 61st counted seventy-eight dead Confederates in front of the regiment. The 61st had also captured the flag, colonel, and 35 other men of the 61st South Carolina. However, the 61st had suffered greatly as well. The 61st had seventy-seven casualties in the fight, including Colonel McGroarty, who was severely wounded in the arm, and Lieutenant-Colonel William Bown, who was mortally wounded in the leg. Captain John Garret was now in command of the regiment.
Following the battle at Peachtree Creek both sides dug in outside of Atlanta. The 61st spent a week guarding a bridge over the Chattahoochie River in the Union rear and then returned to the trenches outside of Atlanta. The 61st remained there until September 4 when it entered Atlanta following the Confederate evacuation.
Captain John Garrett's Report on the Atlanta Campaign
from the Official Records
