ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - On July 22 in 1864, Union and Confederate forces began fighting in one of Georgia’s greatest Civil War battles – the Battle of Atlanta.

Atlanta was the largest industrial, logistical and administrative center outside of Virginia at the time, and it was the junction for all four railroads that connected the remaining Confederate-held territory east of the Mississippi River.

Union forces eventually overwhelmed and drove out the Confederate forces, which led the Union to capture the Georgia city.

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