George W. Cherry (1831 – 1891) was born in North Carolina. He moved to Russell County, Alabama, where he made his living as a planter and merchant. Cherry married Francis ("Fannie") Eugenia Parsons (1834 – 1884) on September 11, 1855. In 1862, Cherry enlisted as First Sargent in Company B, 45th Alabama Infantry of the Confederate Army, and achieved promotion to Captain in 1864. During the Civil War he wrote home frequently, and his letters trace the movements of his regiment and battles fought. Following the conclusion of the war, Cherry returned home after being paroled at West Point, Georgia. After Fannie’s death in 1884, Cherry remarried her sister, Susan Victoria Parsons.

Thomas Mariner Goldsby III (referred to within this collection as "Junior") (1911 – 1945) served in the Pacific during World War II, and died on Okinawa. His parents were Thomas Mariner Goldsby II (1877-1965) and Alice Ingram Goldsby (1888-1978). Goldsby II was an avid collector of family history and Civil War documents, which include correspondence and bills of sale for slaves to Andrew Stevens of Augusta, Georgia, his maternal grandfather.