 General William Tecumseh Sherman to Brigadier General George Henry Thomas
Collection DescriptionHistorical NoteWilliam Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891), was a Union Army General who untilmately won the American Civil War for the North via modern military strategies such as his "scorched earth" policy which devastated the South. Sherman succeeded General Grant 1864 to become the Union commander, shortly thereafter leading his troops to capture the city of Atlanta, a military success that contributed to the re-election of President Abraham Lincoln. Sherman's famous March to the Sea from the western theater of the war through Georgia and the Carolinas resulted in the surrender of all the Confederate armies in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida in April 1865. George Henry Thomas (1816-1870) was a Union General during the American Civil War, one of the principal commanders in the Western Theater. Thomas had a successful record in the Civil War, especially in Tennessee, but he failed to achieve the historical acclaim of some of his contemporaries, such as Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman, partly due to his reticence to encourage his own fame or pursue political advantage. Scope and ContentA three-page letter from General William Tecumseh Sherman to Brig. General George Henry Thomas from the field north of Atlanta, Georgia on May 30, 1864. Sherman describes the proposed positioning of Union troops led by Thomas and McPherson prior to the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. Administrative InformationConditions Governing AccessA reference copy is available for research; permission in required to use the original. Preferred CitationGeneral William Tecumseh Sherman letter to Brig. General George Henry Thomas, ms 1279. Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Georgia Libraries. General NotesPortions of this collection have been digitized and are available online as part of America's Turning Point: Documenting the Civil War Experience in Georgia. Related Materials and SubjectsSubject Terms | ||||||||||||||||||