Primarily correspondence (129 letters) of Illinois farmer and Civil War soldier Carlos W. Colby, written between 1862 and 1865, to his sisters, brother, brother-in-law, and niece, plus a dozen Civil War letters written by Colby’s future brother-in-law James Rowe. Also includes Colby’s reminiscences of his boyhood and his service in the 97th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, some family correspondence, genealogical material and a few photos.

Letters home, 1862-1863, by Charles W. Gallentine of the 7th Illinois Cavalry, from Camp Butler, Springfield, Ill., Jacinto and Corinth, Miss., Memphis and LaGrange, Tenn., and Lawrence Co., Ala., regarding camp life, skirmishes, men killed and wounded, Southern guerillas, northern Copperheads and the draft, Southern plantations and slave attitudes, Union and Confederate prisoners, etc.

Materials pertaining to the family of Chicago banker Edward Eagle Brown, primarily of Brown's father Edward Osgood Brown, great grandfather William Brown, and descendants in the Ipswich and Salem Massachusetts areas.

Correspondence, photographs, and other miscellaneous material pertaining to the Endicott family and relatives of the Redden, Castle, and Smith families. These families lived primarily in the towns of Greenville, Stubblefield, and Villa Ridge, Pulaski County, Illinois. Topics discussed in the correspondence include marriage, domestic life, illness, and religion. Miscellaneous items include an account book, a paper written about dairy farming, and calling and greeting cards.

Correspondence of brothers Henry Patterson and James Patterson, both privates in the 19th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company I, during the Civil War. Also includes muster rolls for Henry and his brother James as well as James’ death certificate.

Civil War letters of John C. Fleming, 1862-1865, Chicago enlistee in the Chicago Board of Trade Battery, Horse Artillery, Illinois Volunteers; small collection of Fleming family mementos and letters, 1863-1906, bulk 1900-1906.

Twelve letters of John J. Russell of Sterling, Illinois, documenting his service as a sergeant and 2nd lieutenant in Company B of the 13th Illinois Infantry in Missouri, Mississippi, and Alabama. Russell writes to his brother, Charles, and sister, Julia, from Rolla, Franklin, and Heetsville, Mo., Vicksburg, Miss., Cairo, Ill., and Bridgeport and Madison Station, Ala. One letter (Dec. 6, 1861) is written on stationery containing a printed vignette portrait of McClellan.

First Lieutenant in the 11th Illinois Cavalry, Company G, who later served as major and aide-de-camp to General James Birdseye McPherson. Includes letters home to family from Brimfield, Peoria County, Illinois, from Camp Benton Barracks, St. Louis, Tennessee, and Louisiana, 1862-1864.

Correspondence, documents, personal materials, genealogical research, and photographs of the Lewis and related families collected by Louise Lewis, sister of Chicago journalist Lloyd Lewis.

Vermont native who settled in Princeton, Bureau County, Illinois, in 1846 and practiced law there for over sixty years. Papers include extensive records of Kendall's legal practice, family correspondence, and real estate records.

Primarily letters of the Waller family, a wealthy, large, educated family from Kentucky, and later Chicago, pertaining mainly to matters of family activity, family devotion to one another, and especially health. Also included are a family genealogy, biography, and letters from Henry Clay and P.G.T. Beauregard. Related family: Alexander

Correspondence, personal documents, photographs, and family materials related to Walter Ansel Strong, publisher of the Chicago Daily News from 1925-1931.