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This collection consiste of Alexander Sterrett Paxton's journals in six volumes (484 p.)during the American Civil War. They cover his service as a member of the 4th Virginia Infantry of the Stonewall Brigade, including his role as a Commissary Sergeant of the regiment. Journal entries explore the war experiences of a Confederate foot soldier and include: his insights into motives for war; observations and descriptions of ranking officers, fellow soldiers, friends and family; detailed accounts of battles and campaigns; and experiences in hospitals and camps, including a few pencil-drawn maps of Stonewall Brigade camps (1861-1862). Volume 6 includes a month-long dream journal that Paxton kept in 1864. The collection also includes correspondence between Paxton's second wife, Mary Frances Tapscott Paxton, and her family; ten pre and post-war photographs of Paxton, his brother, Joseph McClung Paxton and other family members (Tapscott family and Lilley family of Augusta County, Va.); and a ca.1860 fraternity/secret society bylaws document handwritten by Paxton.

The collection consists of the autobiographical memoirs of James Anderson Terrell, a Confederate soldier, settler, cowboy, and politician. Written when Terrell was in his late seventies, the bulk of the material centers on his experiences during the American Civil War and his later time spent pioneering in Kansas. Additional topics include his beginnings in Georgia, life during Reconstruction, and his return to Georgia at the end of his life.