With Sherman's army taking both the Georgia Railroad and high ground to the east of Atlanta, Hood felt forced to counterattack. On July 22, 1864, elements of the Army of Tennessee attacked Sherman from the south and west shortly after noon. General W. H. T. Walker had been shot from his horse only moments earlier, and just after 2p.m. General John B. McPherson would lay mortally wounded by a Confederate soldier.

Starting at 4:30p.m., Union forces stabilized the line that the Confederates tried to crush, regaining control of the three breaches caused by Hood's men. Losses for the Confederate general were reported as 8, 499, however, most historians believe the figure to be considerably higher.

Battle of Atlanta