The 45th United States Colored Infantry was an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Formation

The regiment was formed in 1864, and was composed of men who had been born as free men and others who had been formerly enslaved, but had been freed prior to their enlistment with the Union Army and the

USCT The United States Colored Troops (USCT) were regiments in the United States Army composed primarily of African-American (colored) soldiers, although members of other minority groups also served within the units. They were first recruited during ...

. The primary states of residence of the men who fought with this regiment were New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. The regiment's flag was designed by

David Bustill Bowser David Bustill Bowser (January 16, 1820, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – June 30, 1900, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a 19th-century African-American ornamental artist and portraitist. As the designer of battle flags for eleven African-American ...

and shows an image depicting an African American soldier, representing the 45th United States Colored Troops, standing next to a bust statue of George Washington.

Officers

Ulysses Doubleday, Colonel; Edward Thorn, Lieutenant Colonel;

James T. Bates James Tuttle Bates (29 September 1844 – 24 December 1914) was an American businessman who founded the daily newspaper ''Tribune de Genève'' on 1 February 1879. Early life Bates was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was a son of shipowner Joseph ...

, Major; Lindley Coates Kent, First Lieutenant, then captain, and acting adjutant of the 45th., delmiro Mayer

Service Record

Formed at

Camp William Penn Camp William Penn was a Union Army training camp located in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania from 1863 to 1865, notable for being the first training ground dedicated to African American troops who enlisted in the United Army during the Americ ...

, Pennsylvania, in the summer of 1864. "45th Regiment, United States Colored Infantry. Organized at Philadelphia, Pa., June 13 to August 19, 1864. Moved to Washington, D. C. (4 Cos.), July, 1864. Attached to Provisional Brigade, Casey's Division, 22nd Corps, and garrison duty at Arlington Heights, Va., till March, 1865. Rejoined Regiment at Chaffin's Farm, Va., March 14, 1865. Six Companies moved to City Point, Va., September 20, 1864. Attached to 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, 10th Corps, Army of the James, to December, 1864. 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, 25th Corps, and Dept. of Texas, to November, 1865. SERVICE: Demonstration on north side of the James River and battle of Chaffin's Farm, New Market Heights, September 28–30, 1864. Fort Harrison September 29. Darbytown Road October 13. Battle of Fair Oaks October 27–28. In trenches before Richmond till March, 1865. Moved to Hatcher's Run March 27–28. Appomattox Campaign March 28-April 9. Hatcher's Run March 29–31. Fall of Petersburg April 2. Pursuit of Lee April 3–9. Appomattox Court House April 9. Surrender of Lee and his army. Duty at Petersburg and City Point till May. Moved to Texas May and June. Duty at Edinburg on Mexican Frontier till September 8, and at Brownsville, Texas, till November. Mustered out November 4, 1865." The difficulties of the regiment during the Red River Campaign were described by Private

Pleasant Richardson Pleasant Richardson (c. 1845- May 30, 1935) was a resident of Fincastle in Botetourt County, Virginia, where he was a former slave, a property owner, and Civil War veteran. Early life Pleasant Richardson was born to his slave parents, Patrick an ...

's descendants: "He served with the 45th Infantry of the U.S. Colored Troops, a posting that took him to West Virginia and Pennsylvania, then Washington, D.C., and in the spring of 1864, he was one of 30,000 Union soldiers who undertook the ill-fated Red River Campaign across Louisiana. Roughly one in five men on the Union side died during that expedition, but Richardson survived and the following year he was present when Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House, according to a 1935 article in the Fincastle Herald."Harvey, Neil. 2017
"A soldier of old, remembered"
the

Roanoke Times ''The Roanoke Times'' is the primary newspaper in Southwestern Virginia and is based in Roanoke, Virginia, United States. It is published by Lee Enterprises. In addition to its headquarters in Roanoke, it maintains a bureau in Christiansburg, ...

. May 27, 2017.

References

{{Reflist

Bibliography

* Allen, LaVonne Patterson
Military Records of United States Colored Troops Born in New Kent County, Virginia
Lanexa, VA: LaVonne Patterson Allen & Camilla Lewis Tramuel, 2011. * Doubleday, Ulysses. Ulysses Doubleday order-book. n.d. Summary: Order-book (248 pages) concerning Doubleday's service as a major in the 4th N.Y. Artillery, as lieutenant colonel of the 3rd U.S. Colored Troops, and as colonel commanding a brigade of the 45th U.S. Colored Troops at the Battle of Five Forks. Consists of correspondence, inspection records, rosters of officers, military lessons, newspaper clippings, and material pertaining to armaments and arrangement of artillery of Forts Ethan Allen and Marcy in Virginia and to other military matters. Also includes biographical sketch of Doubleday's brother, Abner. * Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, Thomas Skelton Harrison, and John P. Nicholson
In Memoriam Lindley Coates Kent Major 109th U.S. Colored Troops: Died at Wilmington, Del. February 12, 1916
hiladelphia, Pennsylvania ilitary Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. Headquarters Commandery of the State of Pennsylvania 1916. * United States, Josiah F. Marsh, and Alexander Wilkin. Regimental Order Book. Washington, D.C.: National Archives, 1985. * New Jersey
United States Colored Troops Volunteer Certificates
1864. Summary: Fifty-one volunteer certificates recording the recruitment of New Jersey men into the United States Colored Troops, chiefly assigned to the 43rd and 45th regiments. Certificates include name, age, height, date, and congressional district/municipality credited for each soldier. United States Colored Troops Civil War units and formations Military units and formations established in 1864

Formation

Officers

Service Record

See also

References

Bibliography