As noted in a earlier post, the 61st OVI returned to Chattanooga on May 5, 1864, after a 60-day re-enlistment furlough in Ohio. They then joined the rest of the Union army at Rocky Face Ridge, Georgia, on May 7, just as General Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign begins. The 61st OVI is brigaded with the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, XX Army Corps, under the command of Major General Joseph Hooker. The brigade then began a march from Rocky Face Ridge, through Snake Creek Gap, on their way to the vicinity of Resaca, Georgia.
On May 11, 1864, Robert Patterson took time to write his mother a letter. The letter provides an update on where he is located and a little about the current military situation. He also comments on how hot it is and they have suffered from the heat and 6-inches of dust on the roads. (Transcript of Robert letter, May 11, 1864).