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[3] a portion of Rosecrans's army at Blythe's ferry, on the Tennessee river, opposite the mouth of the Hiwassee, he was ordered to fall back from London to Charleston, and soon after to the vicinity of Chattanooga. Pending these movements above, which were to give East Tennessee to the Federals, not only for occupation, but for cooperation with Rosecrans in his designs upon Chattanooga and the Army of Tennessee, Rosecrans was not idle below. On Tuesday morning, September 1st, citizens living near Caperton's ferry reported that the enemy was crossing the Tennessee river in force at that point (Caperton's ferry); that on Saturday, the 29th August, three days before, a Federal cavalry force had forded the river at some shallows above to the south side, had proceeded down the river to Caperton's, and in conjunction with another force, appearing contemporaneously on the opposite shore, had thrown a pontoon bridge across the river; and that the enemy commenced immediately to cross in force, and had been crossing for three days, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and were moving accross Sand mountain in the direction of Wills's valley and Trenton. This story, regarded at army headquarters as incredible, was soon after confirmed by reports of the occupation of Trenton by the enemy's cavalry, and its advance up the Wills Valley railroad in the direction of Chattanooga as far as Wahatchie, within seven miles, as a covering force to the advance of its infantry columns on Trenton.

In order to understand this movement of Rosecrans, and subsequent operations, a topographical view is necessary.

Chattanooga is situated on the Tennessee river at the mouth of Chattanooga valley — a valley following the course of the Chattanooga creek, and formed by Lookout mountain and Missionary ridge. East of Missionary ridge, and running parallel with it, is another valley-Chickamauga valley — following the course of Chickamauga creek, which, with the Chattanooga creek, discharges its waters into the Tennessee river — the first above and the latter below the town of Chattanooga, and has with it a common source in McLemore's cove, the common head of both valleys, and formed by Lookout mountain on the west, and Pigeon mountain on the east. Wills's valley is a narrow valley lying to the west of Chattanooga, formed by Lookout mountain and Sand mountain, and traversed by a railroad which takes its name from the valley, and which, reaching from the Nashville and Chattanooga railroad where the latter crosses the valley, has its present terminus at Trenton, and future as Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The distance of Bridgeport from Chattanooga is twenty-eight miles, of Caperton's ferry about forty, and of Trenton something over twenty. Ringgold is



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