This collection contains photocopied, typed transcripts of papers relating to the George Henry and Mary Eliza Henderson Caperton family of Virginia. The majority of the collection consists of 17 letters written by Mary Eliza to her husband while he was serving in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. All but one of the letters was written from Whitethorne, the home of Mary Eliza's sister-in-law, Sarah Ann Caperton Preston, in Montgomery County, Virginia, between May and October, 1861. Mary Caperton's letters concentrate on news of the Preston family, relatives, and mutual acquaintainces, particularly news of their participation in the war. She also writes of fears of a slave rebellion, local union sentiment, conditions in Norfolk, a fire at Whitethorne, and the deaths of Ann Barraud Taylor Preston and Col. James Francis Preston. A final letter was written by Mary Eliza at "Ivy Ledge," the Capertons' home in Campbell County, Virginia, on August 13, 1862, and focuses on personal news and her daily household activities and mentions thefts by soldiers and recent battlefield deaths. The collection also contains photocopied, typed transcripts of extracts of George H. Caperton's diary for 1861-1862. The extracts commence with December 25, 1861, in camp near Centerville, Virginia. The last entry is dated January 17, 1862. Also included is a two-page biographical sketch of Caperton.