The collection consists of eight letters written by Lewis Wood to his wife Harriet A. Wood, in Unionville, Ohio, during the American Civil War. Seven of the eight letters were written in January and February 1862, from Camp Dennison, Ohio; en route to Missouri; and in Hudson, Platte City, and Kansas City, Missouri. The last letter was written on April 9, 1863, from Covington, Kentucky. Wood makes no mention of battles or skirmishes that his regiment might have been involved in, but the letters portray accounts of movements of the company, daily routine activities and items of his personal interest. He writes about purchasing food and other necessary items and mentions points of interest as they travel by railroad cars. Tunnels, rivers, and the prairie fascinate Private Wood, since these are new sights. The February 16, 1862, letter includes an account of an auction in Platte City, Missouri, in which a woman and children were enslaved, and with the information that the latter were the children of the man who sold them. Wood's letters reveal a phonetic use of the English language and a general lack of knowledge of spelling or grammar. He uses combinations of vowels and consonants to acquire the words he wishes to express.