Great Locomotive Chase

The Great Locomotive Chase or Andrews' Raid was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the Civil. Volunteers from the Union Army, disguised as civilians, planned to capture a passenger train powered by the locomotive The General. The train was stopped at Big Shanty (now Kennesaw) so that the crew and passengers could have breakfast.
Andrews and his raiders took this opportunity to hijack the General and a few railcars. His goal was to drive the train towards the north toward Chattanooga and in route, Andrews planned to inflict as much damage as possible to the railroad by tearing up track, destroying switches, and disrupting telegraph wires.


The General Marker

The train's conductor, William Fuller, chased the General by foot and handcar. At Etowah, Fuller spotted the Yonah and with it chased the raiders north, all the way up to Kingston. At Kingston, Conductor Fuller got on the William R. Smith and headed north to Adairsville but the tracks south of Adairsville were destroyed by the raiders, so Fuller had to run the distance by foot. At Adairsville, Fuller took command of the southbound locomotive Texas and chased the General in reverse!

With the Texas chasing the General in reverse, the two trains steamed through Dalton, and Tunnel Hill. At various points, Andrews’ Raiders had cut the telegraph wires so no transmissions could go through to Chattanooga. However, their objective of burning bridges and dynamiting Tunnel Hill was not accomplished and just north of Ringgold, Georgia the locomotive ran out of fuel. Andrews' men abandoned the General and scattered, just a few miles outside of Ringgold. A historical marker stands today on what is now Ooltewah-Ringgold Road.