A handwritten, four-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles Alston, in which she laments the ongoing Civil War and specifically worries about their ability to maintain their enslaved workers. She advises him on which enslaved people to bring to Georgetown and the possibility of hiring out Jack, a blacksmith.
A handwritten, four-page letter from Joseph Alston to his father, Charles Alston, in which he tells him of his experience in a skirmish with a Union gunboat and updates him on the movement of other Confederate troops. He also discusses the spread of edema among enslaved people and them escaping to Union soldiers. In addition, he mentions the conditions at his residence and the spread of fever there.
A handwritten, four-page letter from Joseph Alston to his father, Charles Alston, in which he updates him on his status as a Confederate soldier during the Civil War. He informs his father of the Confederate troops moving north to Virginia and discusses topics such as Benjamin Huger's actions and the lack of intervention from England or France in the war.
A handwritten, four-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles, in which she encourages him to provide the enslaved people with milk, meat, tobacco, molasses, and sugar to dissuade them from escaping. She also discusses the general state of their newly acquired farm in Greenville and requests him to send enslaved people to fix it up. On the back of the envelope, a list of names and "by Hands by Charleston South Carolina" is written.
A handwritten, four-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles, in which she relays rumors of enslaved people being impressed into service in Charleston. She advises him on the management of enslaved people such as Andrew, Johny, little Alec, and Brown's wife, and she informs him of the health of relatives in the Confederate military. She also reveals that she has been attempting to hire out an enslaved man, Jack, to various people in Greenville, South Carolina.
A handwritten, two-page letter from James A. Pringle to Charles Alston, forwarded to him by his wife, Emma Alston, in which Pringle updates Charles Alston on his finances, including his payment of the Confederate War tax and holding of Confederate bonds. Emma Alston adds to the letter to inform Charles of the arrival of an enslaved person, Tom Gibbs, to their Greenville farm and express her concerns for the future of Charleston and South Carolina amid the Civil War.
A handwritten, three-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles, in which she encourages him to provide additional provisions, including meat and tobacco, for the enslaved people to prevent them from running away to the Union Army. She also discusses the necessities for the repair of their farm, requesting that he arrange for enslaved labor and materials to be sent.
A handwritten, two-page letter from Emma Alston to her sister, Elizabeth Smith, in which she describes the situation at the Alstons' new farm in Greenville.
A handwritten, two-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles, in which she informs him of her success in purchasing a mule and peas for their farm in Greenville. She also laments the prospected future of South Carolina during the Civil War.
A handwritten, three-page letter from Emma Alston to her husband, Charles, in which she discusses their upcoming move to Greenville or Pendleton, South Carolina, and expresses her concerns about the effects of the Civil War. She also focuses on the management of enslaved people such as Fred, Fred's wife, Ransom, and old Ben at the Alstons' plantations.
