"Like Leaves Before the Wind"

A Civilian Perspective of the Confederate Breakthrough

On Saturday, April 28, at 10 am, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will present a 30-minute program about the civilian perspective of the Confederate breakthrough.  This program will originate at the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center, then caravan to the program parking area. There will be a short walk, uphill from the parking area to the program location.

Have you ever been caught napping? If you have, you are not alone.  On September 20, 1863, Charles Dana, the US Assistant Secretary of War, mentally and physically fatigued, dismounted his horse, lay on a knoll in South Dyer Field, and was soon deep asleep.  Suddenly, he was startled awake by “…the most infernal noise I ever heard.” Dana, unknowingly, chose to nap in the area directly in the crosshairs of Confederate General James Longstreet’s main attack, now known as “The Breakthrough.” Often, on battlefields, visitors hear the stories from soldiers’ perspectives, but on this particular day, 1n 1863, at least two civilians left their accounts of what transpired in the fields that changed the tide of battle in favor of the Confederates. We hope you will not be caught napping like Dana and join us as we explore this interesting story associated with the Battle of Chickamauga.     

For more information about upcoming programs at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, please contact the Lookout Mountain Visitor Center at 423- 821-7786, the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center at 706-866-9241, or visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov/chch.