Atlanta burned; the March to the Sea begins

What happened

Poe's engineers burned the designated buildings, some with shells placed inside, and knocked down the walls. They also destroyed about ten miles of track by burning the ties and twisting each rail with 'a very simple machine designed by myself.' The XV, XVII and XX Corps marched out: the Right Wing toward McDonough and Jonesboro, the XX Corps by Decatur. That night unlicensed burnings set much of downtown afire.