This group of letters centers around Frederic A. Waterhouse, a young man from Pennsylvania who served with Union forces in the American Civil War. The majority of the letters are between Frederic, his father (E.G. Waterhouse), his mother, and his sister (Lucretia). A few of the correspondents are other family members or friends. The letters vividly trace the impact of the war on one family. The letters follow Frederic's army career from a short-lived stint in the field, to an illness that left him unfit for fighting, to his reassignment to the "invalid corps" and the army's decision to put him in charge of a hospital ward. Frederic's letters from the field and the hospitals describe common war themes: lack of food and clothing, horribly injured men, the desire for the war to end, etc. The letters from the family to Frederic highlight their constant fear for his safety and health, and their attempts to comfort him by sending news from home. The final two letters were written to Frederic's father, informing him that his son was mortally wounded to the head and died November 1, 1864, only a month after rejoining his regiment in the field. The final folder includes 12 of the original envelopes in which the letters were sent.