That evening, Johnston withdrew from Pine Mountain and Sherman's forces followed, bringing on the clashes near Gilgal Church.

At Latimer's Farm, Union troops from Oliver Otis Howard's IV Corps gained a foothold in the Confederate line.

Sherman's forces were supported by 25,000 non-combatants including railroad employees and repair crews, teamsters, medical staff, and Black camp servants.

Atlanta was a key Confederate railroad hub, supply point, and manufacturing center, so Sherman selected it as his geographic objective.

The Atlanta campaign began with the Battle of Rocky Face Ridge on May 5–9, 1864 when Sherman sent McPherson's army to envelop Johnston's west flank and the Confederate commander withdrew to Resaca.

Declining to attack the Confederate position frontally, Sherman attempted a wide sweep around Johnston's western flank with McPherson on the right, Thomas in the center, and Schofield on the left.

[7] Blocked by Johnston's defenses, Sherman ordered McPherson's two corps to carefully pull back from their position on the right flank near Dallas during the night of May 31.

On June 2, supported by Hooker, Schofield's corps moved north and east and gained a foothold across Allatoona Creek before encountering a newly dug line of Confederate entrenchments.

[11] When Hooker's corps and McCook's cavalry began extending the Union left flank on June 3, Johnston decided that he needed to abandon the defense lines around New Hope Church.

[12] In two weeks of fighting around Dallas and New Hope Church, Sherman's forces suffered 4,500 casualties while Johnston's army lost 3,000.

McPherson's army marched down the main road, occupied Big Shanty, and came into contact with the Confederates holding Brushy Mountain.

This feature was 1 mi (1.6 km) long and 300 ft (91 m) above the surrounding terrain, and was held by William B. Bate's division and four artillery batteries.

[20] Johnston wanted the Federals to attack Pine Mountain, but Thomas only ordered his troops to dig entrenchments opposite the height.

[19] June 11 was the ninth consecutive day of rain and the sodden condition of the ground made it difficult to get supplies to the Union troops.

On that day, Wright's crews finished the Etowah bridge and a locomotive reached Sherman's headquarters at Big Shanty.

When Sherman made a personal reconnaissance of Pine Mountain about 11 am, he noticed a group of officers on its summit looking at the Federal positions with field glasses.

Sherman asked Howard to make the group take cover, ordered a nearby battery to fire three salvos, and rode off.

Polk was struck in the side by a round from a 3-inch Ordnance rifle; it passed through his chest, ripping out his heart and mangling both arms.

[22] Also on June 14, McPherson's army advanced on the opposing Confederate lines, with Mortimer Dormer Leggett's division of Blair's XVII Corps on the extreme left flank.

In a "dashing charge", the 30th Illinois Infantry Regiment of Manning Ferguson Force's brigade captured a ridge that overlooked a line of outworks of Hood's corps.

Schofield's troops were enabled to capture an advanced line of Confederate entrenchments with small losses by first taking them under effective artillery fire.

Later in the day, soldiers from the 101st Ohio Infantry Regiment captured a Confederate sniper who admitted hitting Simonson after missing three times.

During the withdrawal that night, a chance Union shell injured the leg of brigade commander Lucius E. Polk so badly that it had to be amputated.

On June 17, Hooker's and Schofield's corps advanced along the Sandtown Road, pressing back a covering force of Jackson's cavalry.

Meanwhile, Hascall's division crossed Mud Creek farther south, forcing Hardee to bend back his line to protect his left flank.

[38] Early on June 18, Howard advanced the divisions of Wood and Newton so that their heavy skirmish line overran the outworks in front of them and captured 50 Confederates.

On his own initiative, brigade commander Charles Garrison Harker secured the captured ground and Howard directed Newton's entire division to support the move.

[39] The actions of Wood's and Newton's divisions against the salient held by French and Walker are known as the Battle of Latimer's Farm, and resulted in 200 Confederate casualties.

I have again and again tried to impress on Thomas that we must assail and not defend; we are on the offensive, and yet it seems the whole Army of the Cumberland is so habituated to be on the defensive that, from its commander down to the lowest private, I cannot get it out of their heads."

[45] As Cox explained in his history published 18 years later, starting with the Battle of New Hope Church (May 25), the troops on both sides entrenched themselves as soon as they reached an advanced position.