Henry Matthews (1799-18?) was a Methodist circuit rider, schoolteacher, and practicing physician from Ohio, who made his way from Ohio, through the Illinois Territory, to Texas. Primarily a circuit-riding preacher and schoolteacher in his early days in Ohio, Matthews practiced medicine more formally in the 1830s and 1840s in San Felipe, Texas, where Matthews and his wife Miranda eventually settled. Primarily a medical diary, this volume includes records of medical visits and attendance by Matthews; death notices that feature the names of the deceased and the diseases from which they died; and an account of pregnancies and births attended by Mathews. Of the illnesses that Matthews recorded, venereal diseases dominate the list with syphilis being a primary affliction. The entries include details about the patients'/deceased's lives and families. The diary does not follow consistent ordering and there are large sections of unused pages in between some entries, which are written sideways with the gutter at the top of the writing.

Letter from Thomas Falconer to "My dear Austin" in London. The letter was written in the third month of Falconer's captivity and posted from San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The letter recounts how he became part of the Santa Fe Expedition in June 1841 and narrates his experiences during the expedition. Falconer states that he was falsely told that the expedition was for trade when in fact its purpose was to capture Santa Fe. The letter describes his companions; the decline of Santa Fe's importance for trade; problems with the route and guides; lack of food; a camp fire that becomes a prairie fire; buffalo; and Indian attacks, scalpings, and deaths. A typed transcript of this letter is also available via the Portal to Texas History.

Letter from Thomas Falconer to "My dear Austin" in London. The letter was written in the third month of Falconer's captivity and posted from San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The letter recounts how he became part of the Santa Fe Expedition in June 1841 and narrates his experiences during the expedition. Falconer states that he was falsely told that the expedition was for trade when in fact its purpose was to capture Santa Fe. The letter describes his companions; the decline of Santa Fe's importance for trade; problems with the route and guides; lack of food; a camp fire that becomes a prairie fire; buffalo; and Indian attacks, scalpings, and deaths. The original handwritten letter is also available via the Portal to Texas History.