The Leatherby Libraries’ Center for American War Letters Archives (CAWLA) is dedicated to preserving and making accessible wartime correspondence and related materials between U.S. service members and their loved ones, from the American Revolution to the present. To honor America’s Semiquincentennial (250 years) of independence, CAWLA is thrilled to announce that it has acquired more than 250,000 letters!
On Veteran’s Day 2023, CAWLA’s Founding Director Andrew Carroll kicked off the Archives’ campaign to reach 250,000 letters by July 4, 2026, with a Dear Abby letter marking the 25th anniversary of the War Letters Project. To hit the goal in time, Leatherby Libraries and the Frank Mt. Pleasant Library of Special Collections and Archives staff created the Project 250 Task Force to handle the influx of collection donations.
One of the latest collections we received includes a Civil War letter, written by Union Army Captain Daniel Kauffman from a field hospital to his cousin on April 20, 1865. He conveys his relief that the war was over and grief about President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, which had occurred just a few days earlier.
The Project 250 Task Force successfully hit its 250,000 letter goal in December 2025, over half a year ahead of schedule! To date, the staff has processed 264,604 letters, and that number continues to increase!
CAWLA is grateful to the following Task Force members, whose incredibly hard work made this possible:
- Chair of Special Collections and Archives, Annie Tang
- Coordinator of Special Collections Librarian, Lauren McDaniel
- Emerging Library Technologies and Research Librarian, Victoria Perez
- Archivist, Carl Privette
- Special Collections and Archives Assistant, Belen Gomez
- Special Collections and Archives Assistant, Makenna Jonker
- Archives Assistant, Norm Lee
- Digital Archives Technician, Brian Song
- Past Special Collections and Archives staff and student workers
You can visit CAWLA’s exhibit space in Leatherby Libraries to view letter reproductions (Monday – Friday, 10 am – 12 pm and 1 – 5 pm), as well as those featured on the first floor lobby of Leatherby Libraries in the “America 250” display, curated by Makenna Jonker. Explore the Archives’ finding aids for fully processed collections on ArchivesSpace.
To schedule a research appointment, reserve a guided tour, and/or donate to CAWLA, contact our Archivist, Carl Privette, at privette@chapman.edu, or the Archives at warletters@chapman.edu.
Blog Post Author: Carl Privette
