The collection includes diaries, speeches and essays about the Confederacy during the Civil War, old newspapers, and other material related to the Whittle family. In addition to the Whittle family, the collection also contains material from the Page, Loyall, Dabney, and Gordon families. Of particular note are Camilla Frances Loyall's first hand accounts of Norfolk during the Civil War, and its capture by General Wool and the Union in 1862.