List of people executed in the United States in 1945

One hundred and forty-two people, one hundred and forty-one male and one female, were executed in the United States in 1945, seventy-one by electrocution, thirty-four by gas chamber, thirty-three by hanging, and four by firing squad. ^[1]

The U.S. military would execute 27 people, including 14 German prisoners of war for the murders of three fellow German prisoners.

List of people executed in the United States in 1945

No.	Date of execution	Name	Age of person			Gender	Ethnicity	State	Method	Ref.
			At execution	At offense	Age difference
1	January 4, 1945	Paul Alberts	23	Unknown	Unknown	Male	Black	Louisiana	Electrocution	[1]
2	January 5, 1945	John Ernest Ransom	48	46	2			Arizona	Gas chamber	[2]
3		Rollie Lee Anderson	29	28	1		White	California		[3]
4		Theodore Gonzales	20	18	2		Hispanic
5		Robert E. Lee Folkes	22	20			Black	Oregon		[4]
6		Sylvester Davis	25	25	0			U.S. military	Hanging	[5]
7	January 15, 1945	Henry Sparks	33	33				Florida	Electrocution	[6]
8		Henry William Merten	32	30	2		White	Oregon	Gas chamber	[7]
9		Walter Lorne Wilson	28	27	1
10		John J. O'Connor	20	19				U.S. military	Hanging	[8]
11	January 18, 1945	George Thornton	29	28			Black	Mississippi	Electrocution	[9]
12	January 19, 1945	Henry Glass	21	20				Georgia		[10]
13		Jimmie Lee Tye	22	21
14	February 2, 1945	Willie R. Jones	29	Unknown	Unknown			Virginia		[1]
15	February 9, 1945	Charles Winfred Gilstrap		Unknown	Unknown		White	South Carolina		[11]
16	February 12, 1945	Albert Green	28	27	1		Black	Florida		[1]
17	February 23, 1945	William Jasper Jarrett	54	52	2		White	Iowa	Hanging	[12]
18	March 1, 1945	Holman Burney Thomas	41	40	1		Black	Virginia	Electrocution	[1]
19	March 2, 1945	Hurshel Glenn	24	23			White	California	Gas chamber	[13]
20		Ernest M. Keeling	26	25
21		Djory Nagle	33	32
22		Walter Fowler	22	Unknown	Unknown			Georgia	Electrocution	[1]
23		Willie Jackson	28	Unknown	Unknown		Black
24		Raymond McDaniel	31	30	1		White	Virginia		[14]
25	March 4, 1945	Henry Williams	58	56	2		Black	Texas		[15]
26	March 5, 1945	Lena Baker	44	43	1	Female		Georgia		[16]
27	March 9, 1945	L.C. Johnson	19	Unknown	Unknown	Male				[1]
28		Edmond V. Smith	39	38	1		White
29		Elmer Hardie Biggs Jr.	20	18	2			North Carolina	Gas chamber	[17]
30		William Dalton Biggs
31		John Edgar Messer
32	March 16, 1945	Daniel F. Reedy	19	18	1			Alabama	Electrocution	[18]
33		Joseph H. Hockenberry	22	20	2
34		Thomas Bass	29	26	3		Black	Kentucky		[19]
35		Tommy Nelson	36	35	1		White
36	March 23, 1945	William Fleming Usrey	41	39	2			Mississippi		[20]
37		Joseph Thomas MacAvoy	25	23				Nebraska		[21]
38		Amos Johnson	30	29	1		Black	Oklahoma		[1]
39	March 25, 1945	Robert J. Holloway	23	22				Texas
40	March 30, 1945	Tony Brown	39	37	2			Arkansas		[22]
41		James Chambers	32	32	0			West Virginia	Hanging	[23]
42	April 6, 1945	Lee Albert Smith	62	60	2		White	Arizona	Gas chamber	[24]
43		Carl Fox	18	16			Black	Kentucky	Electrocution	[25]
44		James Willie Brown	28	27	1			Ohio		[26]
45		James Cook Jenkins	24	23
46	April 13, 1945	U.L. Holley	38	38	0			Arizona	Gas chamber	[24]
47	April 16, 1945	Dan Boswell	27	26	1			U.S. military	Hanging	[27]
48	April 18, 1945	Curn L. Jones	24	23						[28]
49	April 20, 1945	James William Collett	60	59	1		White	Ohio	Electrocution	[29]
50	April 24, 1945	George Mansfield Hambrick	26	24	2		Black	Tennessee		[1]
51	April 27, 1945	Ulysses Gilbert	24	Unknown	Unknown			Georgia		[30]
52		Henry Ruhl	36	34	2		White	Federal government	Gas chamber	[31]
53	May 1, 1945	Mancy Christian	27	27	0		Black	Virginia	Electrocution	[32]
54	May 11, 1945	Nathaniel Lamar	21	19	2			Georgia		[33]
55		David Watkins	18	16
56	May 25, 1945	James Yates	21	Unknown	Unknown			Arkansas		[1]
57		Silas James Kelso	25	Unknown	Unknown		White	California	Gas chamber	[34]
58		Edward Frank Hambrick Sr.	27	25	2		Black	Kentucky	Electrocution	[35]
59		Herbert Anderson	31	29				Louisiana		[36]
60		Leo Lyles	21	18	3			Missouri	Gas chamber	[37]
61		Horis Hill	23	Unknown	Unknown		White	North Carolina		[38]
62	May 31, 1945	Eddie Simmons	Unknown	Unknown	3		Black	Mississippi	Electrocution	[39]
63	June 1, 1945	Edward Lee Green	23	Unknown	Unknown			Georgia		[1]
64	June 8, 1945	Lacy Alexander McDaniel	34	33	1			North Carolina	Gas chamber	[40]
65	June 15, 1945	Solomon Washington	30	29				Louisiana	Electrocution	[41]
66	June 18, 1945	Nicholas A. Rossi	32	30	2		White	Connecticut		[42]
67	June 22, 1945	Emery Bolden	26	24			Black	California	Gas chamber	[43]
68		McElwee Harper	35	33
69		Howard Clarence Potts	41	39			White	Colorado		[44]
70		Henry French	35	34	1		Black	North Carolina		[45]
71		William M. Jones	53	Unknown	Unknown
72	June 29, 1945	Jack Roy Green	36	35	1			Georgia	Electrocution	[46]
73	July 7, 1945	Julius Harper	18	17				Texas		[1]
74	July 10, 1945	Walter Beyer	33	32			White	U.S. military	Hanging	[47]
75		Hans Demme	24	22	2
76		Willi Scholz	23	21
77		Hans Schomer	28	27	1
78		Berthold Seidel	31	29	2
79	July 13, 1945	James Joseph Roedl	27	24	3			Utah	Firing squad	[48]
80	July 14, 1945	Erich Gauss	32	31	1			U.S. military	Hanging	[49]
81		Rudolf Straub	39	38
82	July 18, 1945	Billy Dixon	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown		Black	Tennessee	Electrocution	[1]
83	July 20, 1945	Ed Lucky Patton	45	44	1			Alabama		[50]
84		Patrick Steven Murphy	39	36	3		White	Maryland	Hanging	[1]
85	July 25, 1945	William Henry Anderson	23	Unknown	Unknown		Black	Florida	Electrocution
86	July 28, 1945	Albert E. Smithwick	27	26	1		White	Georgia		[51]
87	August 1, 1945	Jesse D. Boston	35	35	0		Black	U.S. military	Firing squad	[52]
88		Cornelius Thomas	23	22	1				Hanging
89	August 3, 1945	Lonnie Pearson	31	31	0			Virginia	Electrocution	[53]
90	August 6, 1945	Robert Davidson	28	27	1			U.S. military	Firing squad	[54]
91	August 14, 1945	Manuel Nino Diaz Camargo	22	Unknown	Unknown	Hispanic	California	Gas chamber	[55]
92		Lee R. Davis	20	19	1	Black	U.S. military	Hanging	[56]
93		Herbert W. Reid	21	20					[57]
94		Clinton Stevenson	30	30	0
95	August 17, 1945	Luther McClam	28	27	1		Maryland		[58]
96	August 22, 1945	Edward Joseph Reichl	39	38		White	U.S. military		[59]
97	August 24, 1945	Robert Roy Gunnells	40	39			Georgia	Electrocution	[1]
98		Henry Hayes	27	26		Black
99	August 25, 1945	Helmut Fischer	22	21		White	U.S. military	Hanging	[60]
100		Fritz Franke	21	20
101		Guenther Kuelsen	22		2
102		Heinrich Ludwig	25	24	1
103		Bernhard Reyak	21	20
104		Otto Stengel	26	25
105		Rolf Wizuy	23	22
106	September 2, 1945	Joseph W. Oglesby	21	21	0	Black	Texas	Electrocution	[61]
107	September 7, 1945	Joe Bill	30	30		Native American	Washington	Hanging	[62]
108	September 8, 1945	Elder Johnson	53	52	1	Black	Ohio	Electrocution	[63]
109	September 14, 1945	Thomas Earl Brigance	31	30		White	California	Gas chamber	[64]
110		Benjamin H. Whitson	27	25	2
111	September 18, 1945	Clarence D. Gibson	24	22	2	Black	U.S. military	Firing squad	[65]
112	September 20, 1945	Fred Hurse	28	26	2			Hanging	[66]
113	September 21, 1945	Charlie Johnson	27	Unknown	Unknown		Georgia	Electrocution	[1]
114	October 3, 1945	Henry William Hagert	20	17	3	White	Ohio	Electrocution	[67]
115	October 5, 1945	Louie Lee Jackson	48	48	0	Black	California	Gas chamber	[68]
116	October 10, 1945	Charles C. Stewart	30	30			Ohio	Electrocution	[1]
117	October 19, 1945	Kermit Breedlove	34	33	1		Illinois		[69]
118	October 26, 1945	Donald Frederick Wood	26	25		White	Mississippi		[70]
119		Burnett Williams	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Black	North Carolina	Gas chamber	[1]
120	October 29, 1945	Pleas Dixon	31	Unknown	Unknown		Florida	Electrocution	[71]
121		Ernest Warren	29	Unknown	Unknown
122	November 2, 1945	Edward Mays	Unknown	Unknown	0		North Carolina	Gas chamber	[72]
123	November 5, 1945	Arthur DeGroat	35	34	1		New Jersey	Electrocution	[73]
124	November 8, 1945	Frank Dudley Carter	25	22	3	White	Ohio		[74]
125	November 9, 1945	Charles Ford Silliman	36	34	2		Colorado	Gas chamber	[75]
126		Noah Collins	29	29	0	Black	Georgia	Electrocution	[1]
127		Jesse Craiton	23	22	1
128		Cliff Thomas Norman	29	28			Oklahoma		[76]
129	November 16, 1945	William Edward Talbert	24	20	4		Missouri	Gas chamber	[77]
130	November 23, 1945	Frank Hubert Martz	35	33	2	White	Colorado		[78]
131	November 26, 1945	Cleveland Greathouse	64	63	1	Black	Indiana	Electrocution	[79]
132	November 27, 1945	Daniel Molnar Jr.	26	25		White	New Jersey		[80]
133	November 30, 1945	Albert J. Simeone	34	33			California	Gas chamber	[81]
134		Nathaniel Taylor	37	Unknown	Unknown	Black	Georgia	Electrocution	[1]
135		Donald H. Brooks	31	30	1	White	Maryland	Hanging	[82]
136	December 4, 1945	George Carter	29	Unknown	Unknown	Black	South Carolina	Electrocution	[1]
137	December 7, 1945	Anderson Daniel James Butler	23	23	0		Delaware	Hanging	[83]
138		Henry Riley	17	17			Louisiana	Electrocution	[1]
139	December 11, 1945	Robert Deegan	29	27	2	White	New Jersey		[84]
140	December 14, 1945	Monroe D. Neely	37	35		Black	District of Columbia		[85]
141	December 28, 1945	John Henry Fields	38	Unknown	Unknown		Maryland	Hanging	[1]
142		William H. Turner	27	27	0	White	West Virginia		[86]

Demographics

Gender
Male	141	99%
Female	1	1%
Ethnicity
Black	81	57%
White	58	41%
Hispanic	2	1%
Native American	1	1%
State
U.S. military	27	19%
Georgia	19	13%
California	13	9%
North Carolina	9	6%
Ohio	7	5%
Florida	5	4%
Virginia	5	4%
Kentucky	4	3%
Louisiana	4	3%
Maryland	4	3%
Mississippi	4	3%
Texas	4	3%
Alabama	3	2%
Arizona	3	2%
Colorado	3	2%
New Jersey	3	2%
Oregon	3	2%
Arkansas	2	1%
Missouri	2	1%
Oklahoma	2	1%
South Carolina	2	1%
Tennessee	2	1%
West Virginia	2	1%
Connecticut	1	1%
Delaware	1	1%
District of Columbia	1	1%
Federal government	1	1%
Illinois	1	1%
Indiana	1	1%
Iowa	1	1%
Nebraska	1	1%
Utah	1	1%
Washington	1	1%
Method
Electrocution	71	50%
Gas chamber	34	24%
Hanging	33	23%
Firing squad	4	3%
Month
January	13	9%
February	4	3%
March	24	17%
April	11	8%
May	10	7%
June	10	7%
July	14	10%
August	19	13%
September	8	6%
October	8	6%
November	14	10%
December	7	5%
Age
Unknown	4	3%
10–19	6	4%
20–29	77	54%
30–39	40	28%
40–49	8	6%
50–59	4	3%
60–69	3	2%
Total	142	100%

Executions in recent years

Number of executions
1946	129
1945	142
1944	122
Total	393

References

1. "Executions in the U.S. 1608-2002: The ESPY File" (PDF). Death Penalty Information Center . Retrieved August 31, 2025.
2. "Negro Executed". Spokane Daily Chronicle. January 5, 1945. p. 15.
3. "Two Die Together In Gas Chamber". The Pittsburgh Press. January 5, 1945. p. 12.
4. "Negro Slayer Pays Penalty". Warsaw Daily Union. January 6, 1945. p. 8.
5. "Davis Hanged For Slaying Angelo Girl". The San Angelo Weekly Standard. January 12, 1945. p. 7. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
6. "First Death Warrant". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. January 5, 1945. p. 3.
7. "Two Executed In Gas Chamber". Eugene Register-Guard. January 15, 1945. p. 1.
8. "Article clipped from Ledger-Enquirer". Ledger-Enquirer. January 30, 1945. p. 10. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
9. "George Thornton Pays Supreme Murder Penalty". The Mississippi Enterprise via newspapers.com. January 20, 1945. p. 1.
10. "Glass v. State". vLex.
11. "Greenville Taxi Driver Dies in Electric Chair". Herald-Driver. February 10, 1945. p. 2.
12. "Farm Hand Dies on the Gallows". Spokane Daily Chronicle. February 23, 1945. p. 13.
13. "3 Murderers Executed". Oxnard Press-Courier. March 2, 1945. p. 2.
14. "McDaniel Electrocuted For Murder". The Bee via newspapers.com. March 2, 1945. p. 3.
15. "Slayer of Gonzales Officer to Die". The Victoria Advocate. March 4, 1945. p. 1.
16. "Georgia Chair Claims First Woman Victim". St. Petersburg Times. March 6, 1945. p. 3.
17. "State v. Biggs". CaseMine.
18. "Two Rapists Die In Alabama Chair". The Evening Independent. March 16, 1945. p. 9.
19. "Two Rapists Die In Alabama Chair". The Telegraph-Herald. March 16, 1945. p. 10.
20. "Slayer Executed". The Deseret News. March 23, 1945. p. 2.
21. "Soldier Executed". The Pittsburgh Press. March 23, 1945. p. 21.
22. "Brown v. State". vLex.
23. "Murderer Is Hanged". The Pittsburgh Press. March 31, 1945. p. 18.
24. "State To Execute Second Convicted Killer Next Week". Prescott Evening Courier. April 12, 1945. p. 18.
25. "Fox v. Commonwealth". vLex.
26. "One-Legged Man, Pal Die in Chair". Youngstown Vindicator. April 7, 1945. p. 2.
27. "Article clipped from The Birmingham Post". The Birmingham Post. April 18, 1945. p. 2. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
28. "Article clipped from Ledger-Enquirer". Ledger-Enquirer. April 28, 1945. p. 2. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
29. "Execution Tonight To End Triple Slaying Case". The Portsmouth Times. April 7, 1945. p. 9.
30. "Gilbert v. State". CaseMine.
31. "Convicted Slayer Dies in Gas Cell". The Telegraph-Herald. April 27, 1945. p. 10.
32. "Negro Executed". Southwest Times. May 2, 1945. p. 4.
33. "Lamar v. State". vLex.
34. "Kelso Dies In Gas Chamber For Murder". Lodi News-Sentinel. May 26, 1945. p. 3.
35. "Clemency is Sought". The Portsmouth Times. May 25, 1945. p. 3.
36. "Slayer Of Bishop Pays With Death". The Oakdale Journal via newspapers.com. May 31, 1945. p. 1.
37. "Young Negro Is Executed". St. Joseph News-Press. May 25, 1945. p. 3.
38. "N.C. Executes Slayer of Sweetheart, Mother". The Afro American. June 2, 1945. p. 1.
39. "State Negro Executed Today For Assault On Laurel White Woman". Clarion-Ledger via newspapers.com. May 31, 1945. p. 1.
40. "Carolinian Executed by Gas; Denies Assault". The Afro American. June 23, 1945. p. 17.
41. "State v. Washington". vLex.
42. "Executed For Bizarre Crime". The Plain Speaker via newspapers.com. June 19, 1945. p. 10.
43. "People v. Harper". Stanford Law School.
44. "Potts v. People". vLex.
45. "Two Negroes Die In Gas Chamber, One Sentence Commuted". The Robesonian. June 25, 1945. p. 2.
46. "Sentenced to Death". Waycross Journal-Herald. June 6, 1945. p. 4.
47. "Noose Claims Five Germans as Murderers". The Telegraph-Herald. July 10, 1945. p. 1.
48. "Serves Pie, Then Dies". The Windsor Daily Star. July 13, 1945. p. 25.
49. "Two More German Prisoners Hanged". The Evening Independent. July 14, 1945. p. 1.
50. "Death Sentence In Hale Slaying Affirmed". The Tuscaloosa News. April 26, 1945. p. 2.
51. "Smithwick v. State". CaseMine.
52. "2 Soldiers Court martials & executed for murder. Jesse D. Boston & Cornelius Thomas Aug. 1945". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. August 3, 1945. p. 5. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
53. "Negro Is Executed In Electric Chair". The Free-Lance Star. August 3, 1945. p. 6.
54. "Soldier Executed". The Afro American . September 22, 1945. p. 8. Retrieved November 6, 2025.
55. "People v. Diaz". Stanford Law School.
56. "PVT LEE R. DAVIS". The Lawton Constitution. August 14, 1945. p. 1. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
57. "Article clipped from Appeal-Democrat". Appeal-Democrat. August 14, 1945. p. 1. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
58. "Killer Of 3 Men Hanged At Penitentiary". The Evening Sun via newspapers.com. August 17, 1945. p. 9.
59. "Edward Death". The Hastings Daily Tribune. August 22, 1945. p. 2. Retrieved October 28, 2025.
60. "Seven Germans Die on Gallows". Waycross Journal-Herald. August 26, 1945. p. 1.
61. "Oglesby v. State". vLex.
62. "Eskimo Ravisher Must Hang, Jurors Decide". The Spokesman-Review. June 9, 1945. p. 15.
63. "Corneas From Eyes of Executed Man Are Transferred to Living". The Flint Journal via newspapers.com. October 18, 1945. p. 32.
64. "Two Oakland Slayers Die In Gas Cell". Oakland Tribune via newspapers.com. September 14, 1945. p. 1.
65. "Soldier Executed". The Afro American . September 22, 1945. p. 8. Retrieved November 6, 2025.
66. "Pvt Fred Hurse Executed for murder of Pvt Eugene Pinckney". Pasadena Star-News. September 21, 1945. p. 5. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
67. "Asks Good Dose, Killer Gets It". The Spokesman-Review. October 4, 1945. p. 2.
68. "People v. Jackson". Stanford Law School.
69. "Killer of Three Dies in Chair at County Jail". Chicago Tribune via newspapers.com. October 19, 1945. p. 21.
70. "Flippant Slayer Dies in Chair". The Evening Independent. October 19, 1945. p. 26.
71. "Two Negroes Die In Raiford's Chair". The Evening Independent. October 29, 1945. p. 6.
72. "State v. Mays". vLex.
73. "Slayer Dies in Chair". St. Petersburg Times. November 6, 1945. p. 17.
74. "Frank D. Carter Executed In Ohio". The Owensboro Messenger via newspapers.com. November 10, 1945. p. 2.
75. "600 Have Gay Time in Pen, Then Slayer Goes to Death". The Pittsburgh Press. November 10, 1945. p. 1.
76. "Warden Refuses to Let Victim See Rapist Die". The Altus Times-Democrat. November 9, 1945. p. 3.
77. "Goes to Death". St. Joseph Gazette. November 16, 1945. p. 6.
78. "Child's Killer Pays With Life". The Telegraph-Herald. November 25, 1945. p. 21.
79. "Child's Killer Pays With Life". Muncie Evening Press via newspapers.com. November 26, 1945. p. 14.
80. "Molnar Dies In Electric Chair". The Herald-News via newspapers.com. November 28, 1945. p. 2.
81. "Execute Simeone In San Quentin". Berkeley Daily Gazette. November 30, 1945. p. 1.
82. "Seven Await Death in State Penitentiary". Baltimore Afro-American. December 1, 1945. p. 1.
83. "Sentenced to Death for Assaulting Girl". The Spokesman-Review. October 3, 1945. p. 17.
84. "State v. Deegan". vLex.
85. "Neely v. United States". vLex.
86. "Slayer of Teen-Age Girl to Hang Tonight". The Pittsburgh Press. December 28, 1945. p. 2.

Preceded by 1944

List of people executed       in the United States in    1945

Succeeded by 1946