Charles Folsom served as a Quartermaster with the 20th Regiment, Massachusetts Infantry. The collection includes 4 letters, 13 payroll sheets (mostly relating to the rebuilding of Campbell's and Pocahontas bridges near Petersburg), 33 pieces of ephemera (notes, receipts), and 47 newspaper clippings (in envelope). Materials date from July-November of 1865. Much of the materials in this collection concern the rebuilding of the Pocahontas and Campbell's bridges in the Petersburg area. Pocahontas Bridge was damaged badly and Cambell's Bridge was completely destroyed when Confederates fired on the bridges as they evacuated Petersburg in 1865.

The four letters in this collection include three written by Capt. Charles W. Folsom and one other written by a Capt. Fiss. They all concern the work conducted on the bridges, asking for reports, need to transport things by train, figures for wood cutters, expenditures, etc. The thirteen payroll sheets list the names, occupations, period of service (dates and amount of days) rate of pay, pay per month, amount received, and signatures. It is highly possible that some of the workers were African-American.

The thirty-three pieces of ephemera include accounts of the "Civil Fund," accounts for Pocahontas Bridge and Campbell's Bridge; accounts for lumber and wood cutting; accounts of "Street Cleaning Fund," short small notes for work crews assembled, weekly reports of wagons, ambulances, harness; Pillow Family payments, etc. The forty-seven newspaper clippings primarily concern the Freedman's Bureau, its operations in the south and troubles between whites and freed slaves.