Battle of New Hope Church

This article is about the Battle of New Hope Church, Georgia. For the Battle of New Hope Church, Virginia, see Mine Run Campaign.

The Battle of New Hope Church was fought May 25–26, 1864, between the Union force of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman and the Confederate Army of Tennessee under Gen. Joseph E. Johnston during the Atlanta Campaign of the American Civil War. The battle was a result of an attempt by Sherman to outmaneuver Johnston.

After Johnston retreated to Allatoona Pass on May 19–20, Sherman decided that he would most likely pay dearly for attacking Johnston there, so he determined to move around Johnston's left flank and steal a march toward Dallas. Johnston anticipated Sherman's move and shifted his army into Sherman's path, centering a new line at New Hope Church. Sherman mistakenly surmised that Johnston had a token force and ordered Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker's XX Corps to attack. Advancing with his three divisions in parallel routes, Hooker pushed the Confederates back for three miles, before coming to Johnston's main line.

Difficult terrain prevented Hooker from coordinating his corps' attacks effectively, causing his men to suffer severe casualties, especially from canister and shrapnel. On May 26, both sides entrenched, and skirmishing continued throughout the day. At the end of the battle, Confederate Captain Samuel T. Foster reported that 703 Union soldiers had been killed, as well as 350 had been taken prisoner. The next day, the Union army concentrated its efforts in this area towards the northern end of the Confederate line, resulting in the Battle of Pickett's Mill.

The New Hope Church battlefield is today privately owned and located at the intersection of Bobo Road and Hwy 381 (Dallas Acworth Hwy) in Dallas.

John Wadsworth Vodrey, son of noted American potter Jabez Vodrey, was killed in the battle while serving with the 46th Pennsylvania Infantry.

References

• National Park Service battle description
• Hope Church Community
• Kennedy, Frances H., ed., The Civil War Battlefield Guide, 2nd ed., Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998, ISBN 0-395-74012-6.