A planned trail is shown on a picture of Mount Rachel in Dalton, Ga., north of downtown.
Contributed Photo IllustrationDALTON, Ga. – Almost 150 years ago, a line of earthen breastworks and a four-gun Confederate battery on Mount Rachel served a dual purpose – as the northern defense against Gen. William T. Sherman’s crushing march to Atlanta and a protection for the railroads in downtown Dalton that were crucial to supplying Georgia’s Confederate army.
With the planned construction of five miles of hiking and mountain-biking trails on Mount Rachel, that part of Dalton’s Civil War history will be accessible to the public for the first time.
“The earthworks remain almost entirely intact,” said Dalton historian and attorney Robert Jenkins. “They are easier to get to than some other sites and are easily accessible to tourists and residents in the downtown area.”
Last week, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources awarded Dalton a $100,000 grant to build the trails as part of $2.1 million in Recreational Trails Program grants to 25 government agencies. The city will provide a 20 percent match to complete the project, located about a mile north of downtown.
Work will start as soon as possible, City Manager Ty Ross said. Shaw Industries owns most of the land and will work with the city to provide access, he said.