Great Locomotive Chase

Overview

The Great Locomotive Chase was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the American Civil War. Volunteers from the Union Army, led by civilian scout James J. Andrews, commandeered a steam locomotive, The General, and took it northward toward Chattanooga, Tennessee, doing as much damage as possible to the vital Western and Atlantic Railroad (W&A) line from Atlanta to Chattanooga as they went. They were pursued by Confederate forces at first on foot, and later on a succession of locomotives, including The Texas, for 87 miles (140 km).

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Great Locomotive Chase was a Union raid targeting the Western and Atlantic Railroad, the vital supply and communications line linking Atlanta to Chattanooga, Tennessee. A group of volunteers led by civilian scout James J. Andrews seized the locomotive known as The General and drove it northward through northern Georgia, attempting to destroy track and infrastructure along the 87-mile corridor. Disruption of the W&A line would have degraded Confederate logistical capacity in the western theater at a critical early stage of the war. The raid ultimately drew a sustained Confederate pursuit, first on foot and then by a series of locomotives including The Texas, demonstrating both the strategic value the Confederacy placed on the railroad and the difficulty of executing deep-penetration sabotage missions behind enemy lines.

Commanders (3)