First Battle of Chattanooga facts for kids

Quick facts for kids First Battle of Chattanooga
Part of American Civil War
Date June 7, 1862 (1862-06-07) – June 8, 1862 (1862-06-08) Location Chattanooga, Tennessee Result Union victory
Belligerents
United States (Union)	CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
James S. Negley	Edmund Kirby Smith
Units involved
Negley's Division, Army of the Ohio	Army of Kentucky
Strength
1 division
Casualties and losses
23	65

The First Battle of Chattanooga was a small but important fight during the American Civil War. It happened on June 7 and 8, 1862, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This battle mainly involved cannons firing at each other. The Union army won this battle.

Why the Battle Happened

In the spring of 1862, the Confederate army divided its soldiers in Chattanooga, Tennessee. They did this to make it harder for the Union army to plan their moves.

A Union general named Ormsby M. Mitchel was ordered to take his soldiers to Huntsville, Alabama. Their job was to fix important railroads there. General Mitchel's troops soon controlled over 100 miles of railroad tracks. These were the Nashville & Chattanooga and Memphis & Charleston railroads. In May, General Mitchel's soldiers had some small fights with Confederate soldiers led by General Edmund Kirby Smith.

The Battle Itself

Map showing the battlefield areas for the First Battle of Chattanooga.

On May 29, General Mitchel was put in charge of all Union troops between Nashville and Huntsville. He then ordered General James S. Negley to lead a small group of soldiers to capture Chattanooga.

General Negley's force arrived near Chattanooga on June 7. He sent the 79th Pennsylvania Infantry to scout ahead and see what the Confederates were doing. They found the Confederate soldiers dug in on the other side of the river, along the banks and on top of Cameron Hill.

General Negley brought up two groups of cannons (artillery batteries) to start firing at the Confederate troops and the town. He also sent his infantry soldiers to the river bank to act as sharpshooters, firing at enemy soldiers from a distance.

The Union army kept firing their cannons at Chattanooga all day on June 7 and until noon on June 8. The Confederates fired back, but their shots were not well-organized. Their gunners were allowed to shoot however they wanted.

On June 10, General Smith, who had arrived on June 8, reported that General Negley's troops had left. He also said that the Confederates had only a few soldiers hurt.

This attack on Chattanooga was a warning to the Confederates. It showed them that Union troops could attack whenever they wanted. The attack also made General Edmund Kirby Smith move Confederate soldiers from other areas to defend Chattanooga. Because these troops were moved, another Union general, George W. Morgan, was able to capture the Cumberland Gap on June 18, 1862.

Protecting the Battlefield

The American Battlefield Trust and its partners have worked to save parts of this historic battlefield. By the end of 2021, they had bought and protected about 120 acres (0.49 square kilometers) of the land where the battle took place.