Ringgold Gap

Outside Ringgold, Georgia, Confederate and Union forces clashed on November 27, 1863, in an engagement known as the Battle of Ringgold Gap, one of the actions comprising the wider Chattanooga campaign of the American Civil War. The fighting came on the heels of a costly setback for the Confederacy at the Battle of Missionary Ridge, a defeat that sent General Braxton Bragg's artillery and wagon trains fleeing southward. Lasting five hours, the clash at Ringgold Gap ended in triumph for Major General Patrick R. Cleburne, whose Confederate troops secured the mountain pass and allowed the Army of Tennessee to withdraw through it unmolested.

Background

The catastrophic collapse of Confederate lines at Missionary Ridge on November 25 pushed the Army of Tennessee into a withdrawal across northwest Georgia. By November 26 the army was moving southward toward Dalton. Braxton Bragg, seeking to buy time for his artillery and supply wagons to clear the gap safely, ordered Patrick Cleburne to hold the position with a force of 4,157 men. Cleburne questioned whether a lone division could adequately hold the ground, yet Bragg would not spare additional troops for the task. Marching south, Cleburne's command arrived at Ringgold near 10:00 p.m., then forded East Chickamauga Creek and settled into camp within the mountain passage known as Ringgold Gap.

From what Union forces could gather, Bragg's retreating army appeared disorganized and in a hurry following its defeat at Missionary Ridge. Ulysses S. Grant, commanding Union forces at Chattanooga, called for a chase to begin on the morning of November 26, though muddled instructions delayed the effort from starting promptly. Joseph Hooker took charge of divisions drawn from the IV, XI, XII, and XV Corps, with orders to sever the Western and Atlantic railroad and press the retreating Confederate rear guard. On reaching the creek, however, his troops discovered that the bridges spanning it had already been set ablaze by the Confederates. Hooker's column did not arrive at Ringgold Gap until roughly 10:00 p.m., at which point he stopped his men two and a half miles short of Cleburne's position for the night stretching from November 26 into the 27th.

Once his troops reached the gap, Cleburne arranged them across three key points: Taylor's Ridge, White Oak Mountain, and the passage itself.

Armies

At Ringgold Gap, Joseph Hooker commanded troops fielded by Ulysses S. Grant. Brigadier General John Geary led the Second Division of the XII Corps within this command. Its 1st Brigade fell under Colonel William Creighton and Lieutenant Orrin Crane and included the 7th Ohio, 66th Ohio, 28th Pennsylvania, and 147th Pennsylvania regiments. Colonel David Ireland directed the division's 3rd Brigade, made up of the 60th New York and 149th New York.

Also present was the First Division of the XV Corps, placed under Brigadier General Peter Osterhaus. Brigadier General Charles Woods headed its 1st Brigade, which drew together the 13th Illinois, 3rd Missouri, 12th Missouri, 29th Missouri, 31st Missouri, and 76th Ohio. Colonel James Williamson commanded the 2nd Brigade, consisting of three Iowa regiments: the 4th, 9th, and 26th.

On the opposing side, Patrick Cleburne directed forces belonging to Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee. Colonel Daniel Govan led Liddell's Brigade, built from eight Arkansas regiments: the 2nd, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 13th, 15th, and 19th. Brigadier General Mark Lowrey commanded a brigade pairing three Alabama regiments, under Major Frederick Ashford, with three additional regiments from Tennessee.

Brigadier General Lucius Polk oversaw another brigade, formed around the 1st Arkansas along with three Tennessee regiments, namely the 2nd, 35th, and 48th. Colonel Hiram Granbury led Smith's Brigade, which brought together the 7th Texas, under Captain Charles Talley, and the Texas Cavalry, commanded by Major William Taylor. Rounding out Cleburne's artillery was Semple's Alabama Battery, part of the Artillery Battalion, placed under Lieutenant Richard Goldthwaite.

Battle

From his vantage point near the depot, Hooker spotted a thin line of Confederate infantry and chose to push his men into the gap without waiting for artillery support. General Charles Woods led his brigade forward, only to be thrown back almost immediately by Granbury's men. The defenders withheld their fire until the advancing Federals closed to within fifty yards. On Cleburne's command, Goldthwaite's crew let loose three rounds from Napoleon cannons that had been concealed among the ranks, while the remainder of the Army of Tennessee traded volleys with the Union soldiers.

Hoping to find an edge, Woods dispatched the 13th Illinois toward the right, aiming to take cover among the structures at Jobes Farm. That effort also failed against Cleburne's defenders, and Woods's men found themselves pinned down by fire raining from Taylor's Ridge as well as artillery positioned inside the gap. Seeking to break the deadlock, Osterhaus ordered the 76th Ohio and 4th Iowa forward against the Confederate positions on the ridge. A punishing opening volley threw his division into disarray, and his troops remained stuck in place for the rest of the fighting.

Around 10:40 in the morning, John Geary's division from the XII Corps reached the field. David Ireland directed one brigade against the Confederate right flank while another regiment pushed toward the gap itself. Pressing deeper, both columns were stopped cold by intense Confederate fire pouring down from Taylor's Ridge and White Oak Mountain. At the same time, William Creighton and Orrin Crane led the 1st Brigade forward to reinforce Williamson's 2nd Brigade on White Oak Mountain. Polk and Lowrey's regiments repelled the assault, and Creighton lost his life while trying to rally his men for another push.

Cleburne had held the position for five hours when, around noon, word arrived from Bragg confirming that the army had cleared the gap safely and that a withdrawal could begin. He left skirmishers behind to mask his retreat, pulled his men out of the gap by roughly 2:00 p.m., and set fire to the bridge on the gap's eastern side. When Grant reached the area, he found his forces scattered and made the call to head back toward Chattanooga, and no further chase after the Confederates was mounted.

Aftermath

Cleburne's losses stood at 20 killed and 201 wounded, while the Union side counted 509 killed and wounded combined. Dana, the Assistant Secretary of War, along with a number of Hooker's own men, harshly faulted Hooker for how he had handled the fighting, yet Grant decided to keep him on for the time being.