Pine Mountain (Cobb County, Georgia)

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Historic marker on top of Pine Mountain Pine Mountain, Cobb County, Georgia historic marker.JPG
Historic marker on top of Pine Mountain

Pine Mountain is a natural geographical feature located in Cobb County, Georgia, near the town of Kennesaw.

Geography The science that studies the terrestrial surface, the societies that inhabit it and the territories, landscapes, places or regions that form it

Geography is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of the Earth and planets. The first person to use the word γεωγραφία was Eratosthenes. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding of Earth and its human and natural complexities—not merely where objects are, but also how they have changed and come to be.

Cobb County, Georgia County in the United States

Cobb County is a suburban county in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2017, the population was 755,754, making it Georgia's third most-populous county. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta.

Georgia (U.S. state) State of the United States of America

Georgia is a state in the Southeastern United States. It began as a British colony in 1733, the last and southernmost of the original Thirteen Colonies to be established. Named after King George II of Great Britain, the Province of Georgia covered the area from South Carolina south to Spanish Florida and west to French Louisiana at the Mississippi River. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788. In 1802–1804, western Georgia was split to the Mississippi Territory, which later split to form Alabama with part of former West Florida in 1819. Georgia declared its secession from the Union on January 19, 1861, and was one of the original seven Confederate states. It was the last state to be restored to the Union, on July 15, 1870. Georgia is the 24th largest and the 8th most populous of the 50 United States. From 2007 to 2008, 14 of Georgia's counties ranked among the nation's 100 fastest-growing, second only to Texas. Georgia is known as the Peach State and the Empire State of the South. Atlanta, the state's capital and most populous city, has been named a global city. Atlanta's metropolitan area contains about 55% of the population of the entire state.

Contents

Geography

Pine Mountain is located at approximately 33°59'21.13" up North, 84°38'43.00" West. The small "mountain" has an approximate elevation of 1292 feet or 394 meters above sea level. Contrary to the implications of its name, Pine Mountain is plentiful with various deciduous trees. However, pines are usually the first tree to grow after deforestation, so it was likely covered with pines when it was named in the 19th century.

Mountain A large landform that rises fairly steeply above the surrounding land over a limited area

A mountain is a large landform that rises above the surrounding land in a limited area, usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill. Mountains are formed through tectonic forces or volcanism. These forces can locally raise the surface of the earth. Mountains erode slowly through the action of rivers, weather conditions, and glaciers. A few mountains are isolated summits, but most occur in huge mountain ranges.

Elevation Height of a geographic location above a fixed reference point

The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface . The term elevation is mainly used when referring to points on the Earth's surface, while altitude or geopotential height is used for points above the surface, such as an aircraft in flight or a spacecraft in orbit, and depth is used for points below the surface.

Deciduous trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally

In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous (/dɪˈsɪdʒuəs/) means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, after flowering; and to the shedding of ripe fruit.

The mountain is also part of the ridge which divides the two watershed basins of the county. To the north and west is Lake Allatoona, while to the south and east is the Chattahoochee River. From here, the line runs west-southwest across Lost Mountain, and east-northeast across Kennesaw Mountain and Sweat Mountain.

Ridge A geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance

A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from narrow top on either side.The line along the crest formed by the highest points, with the terrain dropping down on either side, is called the ridgeline. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size.

Drainage basin Area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet

A drainage basin is any area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet, such as into a river, bay, or other body of water. The drainage basin includes all the surface water from rain runoff, snowmelt, and nearby streams that run downslope towards the shared outlet, as well as the groundwater underneath the earth's surface. Drainage basins connect into other drainage basins at lower elevations in a hierarchical pattern, with smaller sub-drainage basins, which in turn drain into another common outlet.

Lake Allatoona

Lake Allatoona is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Etowah River in northwestern part of the State of Georgia, in the countryside. This reservoir is mostly in southeastern Bartow County and southwestern Cherokee County. A small portion is located in Cobb County near Acworth. Cartersville is the nearest city to Allatoona Dam. Also, Red Top Mountain State Park is located on its shores, on the peninsula between the two arms of the lake. Most of the north side of the lake remains protected from land development because of its isolated location, mostly blocked by the lake.

History

Pine Mountain in 1864. Pine Mountain, Ga., 1864, where Gen. Polk was killed - NARA - 528889.jpg
Pine Mountain in 1864.

Pine Mountain is the site where Confederate Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk was killed on June 14, 1864, during the American Civil War.

Confederate States Army Army of the Confederate States

The Confederate States Army (C.S.A.) was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting against the United States forces. On February 28, 1861, the Provisional Confederate Congress established a provisional volunteer army and gave control over military operations and authority for mustering state forces and volunteers to the newly chosen Confederate president, Jefferson Davis. Davis was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, and colonel of a volunteer regiment during the Mexican–American War. He had also been a United States Senator from Mississippi and U.S. Secretary of War under President Franklin Pierce. On March 1, 1861, on behalf of the Confederate government, Davis assumed control of the military situation at Charleston, South Carolina, where South Carolina state militia besieged Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, held by a small U.S. Army garrison. By March 1861, the Provisional Confederate Congress expanded the provisional forces and established a more permanent Confederate States Army.

Leonidas Polk Confederate Army general

Leonidas Polk was a planter in Maury County, Tennessee, USA, and a second cousin of President James K. Polk. He was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana. He resigned his ecclesiastical position to become a major general in the Confederate army. His official portrait at the University of the South depicts him dressed as a bishop with his army uniform hanging nearby.

American Civil War Civil war in the United States from 1861 to 1865

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The most studied and written about episode in U.S. history, the Civil War began primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people. War broke out in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina shortly after Abraham Lincoln had been inaugurated as the President of the United States. The loyalists of the Union in the North proclaimed support for the Constitution. They faced secessionists of the Confederate States in the South, who advocated for states' rights to uphold slavery.

Whereas Pine Mountain was the highest point between Kennesaw Mountain and Lost Mountain, it was of interest to both Confederate and Union forces during the Atlanta Campaign. Consequently, between June 5 and June 15, Confederate forces fortified and held Pine Mountain as an outpost of the main Confederate line 1.2 miles south of the line that extended from Lost Mountain to Brushy Mountain. The Confederates positioned artillery of Bates' Division, Hardee's Corps Artillery, 5th Company of Washington Artillery of Louisiana, and Lt. R. T. Beauregard's South Carolina Battery atop Pine Mountain.

Union Army Land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War

During the American Civil War, the Union Army referred to the United States Army, the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. Also known as the Federal Army, it proved essential to the preservation of the United States of America as a working, viable republic.

Atlanta Campaign military campaign during the American Civil War

The Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater of the American Civil War throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta during the summer of 1864. Union Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman invaded Georgia from the vicinity of Chattanooga, Tennessee, beginning in May 1864, opposed by the Confederate general Joseph E. Johnston.

Line of battle Naval tactic involving broadside artillery fire from a line of vessels

In naval warfare, the line of battle is a tactic in which a naval fleet of ships forms a line end to end. Its first use is disputed, variously claimed for dates ranging from 1502 to 1652, with line-of-battle tactics in widespread use by 1675.

On June 10, the Union XIV and XX Corps Artilleries redeployed from Mars Hill Church to a position facing south towards Pine Mountain. The XIV Corps Artillery occupied the left flank; the XX the right. From this location, Union artillery hoped to check the Confederates' strategic placement of guns near Pine Mountain's summit.

On June 14, Generals Johnston, Hardee, and Polk, while positioned atop Pine Mountain to observe the Union lines, were fired upon by the Union batteries. General Polk was struck in his upper torso by an artillery shell, and died instantly. The observation outpost was abandoned the next day, as Confederate forces rejoined the main Confederate line. Near the summit of the mountain, a stone marker of considerable height, located here 33°59.337′N 84°38.759′W, was erected in memoriam to General Polk showing where he was standing when killed.

Coordinates: 33°59′21″N84°38′43″W / 33.9892°N 84.6453°W / 33.9892; -84.6453

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