The march used four principal corps columns, with cavalry and temporary splits sometimes creating six or more moving bodies. Their speed and dispersion made it difficult for a smaller defender to identify and block the decisive route. The campaign included little major fighting between Atlanta and the coast because Confederate forces generally moved away from the approaching mass. Fort McAllister was the decisive coastal connection, where the Union Navy could reopen supply and deliver heavy equipment. A deep inland operation thus became a sea-supported army again at precisely the point when it needed to confront Savannah.
Notable Point · 1:08:34-1:10:16
Fort McAllister restores the sea link
The scattered columns converged near Fort McAllister, where connection with the navy restored supplies and opened the way to Savannah.