KENESAW MOUNTAIN Battle of. On the night of 18 June 1864, Gen. J: E. Johnston fell back before General Sherman's persistent advance and took a new line with Kenesaw Mountain as its salient, his right wing thrown back so as to cover Marietta, and his left cover ing the railroad back to the Chattahoochee. Sherman worked to the right, threatening the railroad, and was attacked by Hood's corps at Kolb's Farm (q.v.), 22 June. After much study of the ground, Sherman concluded that he had no alternative hut to assault Johnston's line or turn his position. Either course had its difficul ties and dangers, but as the enemy and his own officers had settled down to the conviction that he would not assault fortified lines, but would execute flanking movements only, he considered that a successful assault would have a good moral effect and show that he could move against an enemy behind breastworks; so he resolved to attack the left centre of Johnston's position, and orders were given on the 24th that on the 27th McPherson should assault near Little Kenesaw and that Thomas should assault about a mile further south. Kenesaw was strongly intrenched and held by Loring's and Hardee's corps, Loring on the right, opposite McPherson, Hardee, on the left, opposite Thomas. About 9 A.M. of the 27th the troops moved to the assault, and all along the lines for 10 miles a furious fire of artillery and musketry was kept up. A part of Logan's Fifteenth corps, formed in two lines, fought its way up the slope of Little Kenesaw, carried the Confederate skirmish-pits, and tried to go further, but was checked by the rough nature of the ground and the fire of artillery and musketry delivered at short range from behind breastworks. Logan's
assault failed, with a loss of 600 men, and his troops were withdrawn to the captured skirmish pits. About a mile to the right Thomas as saulted with Newton's and Davis' divisions. The troops charged up the face of the mountain, drove in the skirmish line and reached the main works, but were unable to carrry them under the heavy fire of canister and musketry at short range; after heroic effort and the loss of Gens. C. G. Harker and Daniel McCook, commanding brigades, and 1,580 killed, wounded and missing, fell back and intrenched 75 yards from the enemy's works. The assault was over by 11.30 A.M., and was a failure. It was the most serious reverse sustained by Sherman in the campaign. The entire Union loss was nearly 2,500; John. stun admits a Confederate loss of 808 killed and wounded. Consult 'Official Records' (Vol XXXVIII) ; Cox, 'Atlanta' ; Van Home, (His tory of the Army of the Cumberland' (Vol II) ; Sherman,