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This collection contains correspondence related to Brewster E. Littlefield's service with the United States Army's 101st Engineers during World War I. Littlefield wrote around 110 letters to his family in Braintree, Massachusetts, about his experiences in France, which included service in the front lines. The collection also includes letters about Littlefield's death, poetry about the war, and photographs.

This collection (155 items) contains correspondence related to Brewster E. Littlefield's service with the United States Army's 101st Engineers during World War I. Littlefield wrote around 110 letters to his family in Braintree, Massachusetts, about his experiences in France, which included service in the front lines. The collection also contains letters about Littlefield's death, poetry about the war, and photographs.

The Correspondence series (135 items), which comprises the bulk of the collection, contains letters that Brewster E. Littlefield wrote to his parents from September 25, 1917-October 31, 1918. Early letters pertain to his journey to France via Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Southampton, England. After arriving in France in October 1917, Littlefield wrote about his daily experiences with the 101st Engineer Regiment. He discussed his living quarters, his religious life, and his work as a gas mask specialist, which involved frequent travel by motorcycle and on horseback. Littlefield also commented on his training exercises, which included a simulated gas attack, and mentioned his pride in the American "doughboys." He spent time in the trenches and near the front lines, traveled around France, and attended training in Paris; his letters include descriptions of artillery attacks, aerial warfare, and gas attacks. He reflected on the impact that the war had on him, such as his gradual adjustment to shelling. On several occasions, including in his final letter, he remarked on close encounters with German bombs. Littlefield also wrote about his relationship and correspondence with a girl named Almira, an encounter with German prisoners of war, and the impact of the influenza epidemic.

Additional correspondence items largely postdate Littlefield's death. In November 1918, the Littlefield family received a telegram and official letter notifying them of Brewster E. Littlefield's death, and they later received 2 letters from his army acquaintances about the precise circumstances of the incident. Later correspondence relates to Littlefield's personal effects and final paycheck. Two sets of military orders concern other American soldiers.

The Poems, Photographs, and Currency series (20 items) contains additional materials related to Brewster E. Littlefield and the First World War. Two typed poems concern soldiers' experiences during the war. Seventeen snapshots and card photographs (one of which is dated December 1, 1941) show families, a dog in the snow, and World War I-era United States soldiers in uniform, including Brewster E. Littlefield. The final item is a one-franc note.

The James R. Woodworth papers contain the letters and diaries of a Union soldier in the 44th New York Infantry during the Civil War (1862-1864). Woodworth provides detailed reflections on life as a soldier and on his regiment's part in the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg.

The James R. Woodworth papers (151 items) contain the letters and diaries of a Union soldier in the 44th New York Infantry during the Civil War (1862-1864). The collection consists of 143 letters, four diaries, one poem, and a bundle of 37 envelopes. In both the letters and the diaries, Woodworth provided detailed reflections on life as a soldier, his regiment's part in the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, and the horrors of war.

The Correspondence series (143 items) consists of 122 letters from James Woodworth to his wife Phebe, five from Phebe to James, three from friends and relatives to James, one from a friend to Phebe, and 12 fragments written by James and Phebe.

Woodworth's letters to Phebe contain descriptions of his war experiences. Topics include foraging, gambling, homesickness, lice, prostitutes, singing, sickness (fever, dysentery, smallpox, typhus fever, scarlatina), food (alcohol, beans, beef, bread, coffee, and hardtack), and opinions on religious matters. Woodworth was well educated and a skillful writer who often provided emotional and perceptive observations on life in his regiment and the aftermath of battles. Woodworth also frequently discussed his wife's struggles on the home front, raising their young son and running their farm in Seneca Falls, New York. This series also contains a printed poem by William Oland Bourne entitled "In Memoriam, Gettysburg, July 1-4, 1863."

The Diaries series (4 volumes, 426 pages) contains Woodworth's wartime diaries covering the period from his arrival in Virginia in October, 1862, to a few weeks before his death in 1864. Though the entries are often brief, they provide complementary information for the letters and often fill in gaps concerning travel and troop life. Of particular note are Woodworth's reflections on the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg.

The third diary contains two additional items, stored in a pocket in the back of the volume. One item is a small volume entitled "The Soldier on Guard," which explains the responsibilities of a Union soldier on guard duty (64 pages). The other is a 3-page printed item entitled "Rules for Dr. Gleason's Patients," which contains advice for healthy living.

This typescript consists of extracts from the diary of Major Richard Bailey Crandall, pertaining to his service with the 6th Vermont Infantry Regiment from January to May 1864. Crandall wrote about visits to Vermont and Washington, D.C., his religious beliefs, his romantic feelings for a female correspondent, and his regiment's engagements with Confederate forces during the Overland Campaign.

This typescript consists of extracts from the diary of Major Richard Bailey Crandall, pertaining to his service with the 6th Vermont Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. From January 1, 1864, to June 5, 1864, Crandall wrote brief entries about his daily activities, with a few gaps. In mid-January and early February, Crandall discussed his social activities while visiting friends and family members in Montpelier, Vermont, and New York City. In New York, he remarked on his pleasant friendship with a woman (identified by the initial "L"); he wrote about his romantic feelings for and correspondence with L. throughout the remainder of his diary, often wondering whether she reciprocated his sentiments. In early April, Crandall spent 10 days' leave in Washington, D.C., where he described members of the House of Representatives. Crandall often attended religious services and otherwise commented on his faith. His diary contains a few brief religious and patriotic poems.

The majority of Crandall's entries concern aspects of military life, such as camp life, picket duty, and leisure activities; he occasionally referred to academic debates and prayer meetings. By early May, he wrote primarily about his regiment's movements and encounters with Confederate forces. The diary contains brief descriptions of Crandall's participation in the Battle of the Wilderness, the Battle of Cold Harbor, and several skirmishes; he often recounted his regiment's movements during the fighting and reported on casualties. By mid-May, Crandall and other soldiers were exhausted by the constant fighting, though he maintained his commitment. He made his final entry on June 5, 1864, two days before his death. The volume includes two additional entries made by one of Crandall's parents on June 7 and June 17, 1864, regarding his death at the hands of a Confederate sharpshooter and his burial.

The original diary is located at the Vermont Historical Society.