News Release

First into Chattanooga - The Gateway City Falls

Date: August 23, 2024
Contact: Kim Coons, 706-866-9241, ext. 139

Fort Oglethorpe, GA:  On Saturday, September 7, at 11 am, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will host a 90-minute, ranger-led, walking tour along the Old Wauhatchie Pike, on Lookout Mountain, to discuss the 92nd Illinois Mounted Infantry’s race to capture Chattanooga. Parking for this program will be along the Old Wauhatchie Pike, near 2161 Old Wauhatchie Pike Road, Chattanooga, TN 37409.

On the morning of September 9, 1863, Colonel Smith Atkins led the 92nd Illinois Mounted Infantry thundering across the face of Lookout Mountain to make sure his regiment’s national colors were the first to float above the important rail hub of Chattanooga, Tennessee. However, this race did come at some cost, both in the form of Confederate cavalrymen and from shells dropped from Moccasin Point by the 18th Indiana Light Artillery, soldiers belonging to the Atkins’ own brigade – Wilder’s “Lightning” Brigade. 

We hope you can join us as we commemorate some of the first actions associated with Chattanooga’s fall, which ultimately led to the deadly Battle of Chickamauga. 

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