The bulk of the collection is a series of nine Journals (with entries from May 20, 1861 to August 6, 1865) which Robbins kept during his service in the Civil War as hospital steward and assistant surgeon with Company I of the Second Michigan Infantry. The journals focus largely on his religious activities and meditations, and also include descriptions of camp life, hospitals, weather, food, people and places visited, battles, and reports of war activities elsewhere. Most of the journals have lists at the back for letters Robbins sent, letters received, and the books he read during that time, as well as a topical index of the events in the journal.
Of particular interest in the early journals are frequent references to Sarah Emma Edmonds, alias Frank Thompson, who served as a Union soldier, nurse and spy. She deserted in April, 1863, and by 1865 she had published a book of her war adventures. From these references, and from two letters in the collection which Emma wrote to Robbins, it was probable that she was romantically interested in Robbins, but the feelings were not mutual.
There are two notable gaps in the journal entries. The first is from June 1-27, 1863, where the first twenty pages are missing from volume 7. According to a note in the donor file, the second gap, from February 15 to December 31, 1864, is due to a post-war fire at Dr. Robbins' office which destroyed at least one journal following volume 8. While the first eight volumes were consecutively numbered by Robbins, he did not write a number in the journal with entries for 1865, now volume 9.
In addition to journal entries for 1865, volume 9 also includes lists of rations received (August 1863), government reimbursements (August to December 1863), medical symbols with Latin and English translations, and personal expenses (January 1865 to September 1867). There is also a twenty-page account of the September 1863 march through Kentucky and eastern Tennessee, which culminates in the Battle of Cumberland Gap. This account is rich with descriptions of the people, towns, farms and beautiful countryside seen on the march, as well as details of the battle.
