Walcutt's Attack on the Gorge

Confederate soldiers took advantage of this terrain to stem a heavy frontal assault.

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

North slope of Pigeon Hill

Significance:

Site of Union frontal assault

Designation:

National Battlefield Park

Amenities

2 listed

Cellular Signal, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

The far left of the attack on Pigeon Hill would be orchestrated by General Charles C. Walcutt’s Brigade. They would assault the northern slope of Pigeon Hill and the gorge between it and Little Kennesaw (visible to the northwest from this location). Walcutt’s assault would fare no better than Smith’s further south. With the 46th Ohio leading the way as skirmishers, the brigade advanced in two lines of two regiments each. Shot and shell from the heights in their front rained down on the troops as they crossed an open field. Confederate rifle pits 200 yards in front of Little Kennnesaw, manned by soldiers in the 46th Mississippi Regiment, suffered heavy casualties as oncoming men in blue easily overran their position. But Walcutt’s line would meet no more success that day. As John T. Hunt of the 40th Illinois wrote, “[N]earing the base of the mountain, we met a terrible withering fire. …[W]e found it would be a moral impossibility to scale it in the face of an active, vigilant and relentless foe. Some…tried the ascent, and left their lifeless remains as testimonials to futility.” On the crest of Little Kennesaw, Sears helped stem Federal penetration of the gorge by directing his men to fire downward on the men in blue. Now caught in crossfire between the brigades of Sears and Cockrell, Walcutt’s troops were compelled to en-trench and hunker down until nightfall covered their withdrawal. The rest of the Union force assaulting Pigeon Hill would follow suit, thus ending the fighting in this area.