In World War II, following stateside training at Camp Barkley, Fort Sill, Camp Devens, the 45th Infantry Division landed in Sicily on 10 July 1943. They worked their way up the East coast in their quest to reach Messina.
Following Sicily the division landed at Salerno and Anzio, as part of the forces in the taking of Italy.
In August of 1944, the 45th Division, again involved in an assault landing, crashed the beaches in southern France. By the end of September they crossed the Moselle River and entered the western slopes of the Vosges Mountains. Pushing on they broke through the Maginot Line and came to the Moder River.
In March of 1945 they penetrated the Siegfried Line and captured Homburg. The 45th then crossed the Rhine. They captured Nurnburg in late April. In the last days of April and early May they crossed the Danube River, capturing Munich where they remained when World War II Europe ended in May of 1945.