Union General William Tecumseh Sherman’s troops were in need of supplies as they approached Savannah, Georgia. Concluding that supply ships could reach him if they took Fort McAllister, he ordered Major General Oliver Otis Howard’s Army of Tennessee to do just that. Howard ordered division commander Brigadier General William B Hazen to attack the fort, which they did on December 13th 1864. Hazen’s four thousand men rushed forward upon his order through many obstacles including buried torpedoes, entering the fort they captured it in about fifteen minutes. This gave the Union troops the control of the Ogeechee River and access to the ocean.
With supplies coming, Sherman began to prepare for the siege and capture of Savannah. He achieved this goal on Christmas day.
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