The papers of United States and Confederate army officer, lawyer, and Virginia state legislator Jubal Anderson Early (1816-1894) consist of 5,000 items (5,368 images) in 18 containers. Spanning the years 1829-1930, the bulk of which were created after the Civil War, the collection includes correspondence, diaries, military papers, speeches and articles, clippings, a scrapbook, printed matter, and maps relating to his military, legal, and political careers. Material created prior to the Civil War reflects Early's years as a cadet at the United States Military Academy, his army service, law practice, and Virginia political activities. Papers relating to Early's experiences during the Civil War include items concerning his participation in the battles of First Bull Run and Williamsburg, the Gettysburg Campaign, and the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864. The collection also contains a report on the performance of General Isaac Trimble's brigade in the Battle of Second Bull Run, reports by generals Harry T. Hays and Clement A. Evans on skirmishes in the Mine Run Campaign, a list of units in G. T. Beauregard's I Corps, Army of Northern Virginia (1862), and a return of troops commanded by Joseph E. Johnston in the spring of 1862. Postwar material documents Early's exile outside of the United States, business affairs, especially the Louisiana lottery, his activities at the Southern Historical Society, and aid extended to Confederate families, including that of Jefferson Davis and Stonewall Jackson.

Prominent correspondents include G. T. Beauregard, Raleigh E. Colston, John W. Daniel, Jefferson Davis, Varina Davis, Daniel Harvey Hill, Stonewall Jackson, Bradley T. Johnson, Joseph E. Johnston, Fitzhugh Lee, Robert E. Lee, Dabney Herndon Maury, John Singleton Mosby, and Earl Van Dorn. The collection also includes letters from John J. Cabell to his wife Henry Ann Cabell. The letters written by Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee are photostatic copies. Jubal Early's nieces and nephew retained the original Davis and Lee letters when the Library of Congress purchased the bulk of the collection in 1932.

A finding aid (PDF and HTML) to the Jubal Anderson Early Papers is available online with links to the digital content on this site.

This collection is arranged in three series:

• Chronological File, 1829-1911 (Containers 1-15)
  Contains correspondence, military papers, and other material arranged chronologically in bound volumes.
• Addition, 1833-1930 (Container 16)
  Includes correspondence, a diary, military papers, printed matter, and speeches and writings. The materials are arranged alphabetically by type of material and chronologically therein.
• Oversize, 1833-1930 (Containers OV-1 and OV-2)
  Consists of an oversize scrapbook removed from the Addition series.