[1] In May 1861, Major William N. Ward raised a unit known as 'Essex and Middlesex Battalion,' one company of which, the 'Essex Sharp Shooters' had been in existence since the summer of 1860 as a volunteer company.

It received the formal designation '55th Virginia Infantry' in September 1861 when Colonel Francis M. Mallory took command.

In total, 1,321 men appeared on the muster rolls; of these, 1,181 saw active service with the regiment.

Its field officers were Colonels William S. Christian and Francis Mallory; Lieutenant Colonels Robert H. Archer and Evan Rice; and Majors Thomas M. Burke, Robert B. Fauntleroy, Charles N. Lawson, Andrew D. Saunders, and William N.

This article about a specific military unit of the American Civil War is a stub.