FORTY-FIFTH VIRGINIA INFANTRY
The Forty-Fifth Virginia Infantry was organized on May 29, 1861, and was mustered into Confederate service a few days later. It originally contained 10 companies, A through K. An eleventh company, L, served with the regiment from September 3, 1861 until January 15, 1862 when it was reassigned to the Twenty-Third Virginia Infantry Battalion.More detailed information about each company is given below:
As with almost all Civil War units the regiment was sometimes described by an alternate designation derived from the name of its commanding officer. Names of this type used by or for the regiment are shown below:
The regiment's original commanding officer, Henry Heth, was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General on January 6, 1862. Nominated to the rank of Major-General, effective October 10, 1862, this nomination was not approved by the Confederate Congress. He was re-nominated to this rank on May 24, 1863, and this time his promotion was approved. He held this rank for the duration of the war. Troops of Heth's division opened the Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on July 1, 1863.
The Forty-Fifth Virginia Infantry (which was sometimes incorrectly identified as the Fourth Virginia Infantry) was assigned to duty in the Army of the Kanawha soon after being mustered into Confederate service. Later it saw duty in the Department of Western Virginia, the Army of Western Virginia, the Army of Western Virginia and East Tennessee, and back in the Department of Western Virginia before ending its service in the Army of the Valley District. The list below shows the specific higher command assignments of the regiment.
The Forty-Fifth Virginia Infantry participated in a number of engagements during its service. They are identified below.
Numbers following some listed places correspond to numbers on a map. Click 
here to view the map.
When the news of the surrender of Confederate forces under General Lee reached the area in which the Forty-Fifth Infantry was stationed, it was decided to disband the unit rather than continue resistance.
The above information was provided by The Harold B. Simpson Confederate Research Center, on the campus of Hill College, 112 Lamar Drive, Hillsboro, Texas 76645.
45th Infantry Regiment was formed in May, 1861, with men from Tazewell, Wythe, Grayson, Carroll, and Bland counties. It was assigned to Echols', G.C. Wharton's, and Forsberg's Brigade, and served in Western Virginia. The regiment fought at Carnifex Ferry, reporting 26 killed, 96 wounded, 46 captured, and 6 missing in the fight at Cloyd's Mountain; then saw action in the Shenandoah Valley. It sustained many casualties at Third Winchester and during April, 1865, disbanded. The field officers were Colonels William H. Browne, Henry Heth, and W.E. Peters; Lieutenant Colonels Benjamin F. Ficklin, Edwin H. Harman, and William H. Werth; and Majors A.M. Davis, William C. Sanders, and Gabriel C. Wharton.
The above information taken from the book Units of the Confederate Army by Joseph H. Crute, Jr. Published by Derwent Books, Midlothian, Virginia;
1987.
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