The collection consists of an eight-page letter written by Major John André during the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War, as identified by historian and author Thomas J. McGuire. Written in Germantown in 1777, the letter chronicles the Philadelphia campaign from the British landing at Head of Elk, Maryland, in August 1777, through the Battle of Germantown, on October 4, 1777. Five of the pages were written on September 28, 1777, with the remaining three written on October 8, 1777.

The letter describes the conduct and aftermath of several battles of the American Revolution, including the Battle of Brandywine, the Battle of Paoli (also known as the Paoli Massacre) and the Battle of Germantown. It illustrates the participation in these battles of many well-known and important figures of the American Revolution, including American generals George Washington and Anthony Wayne, as well as British officers General Sir William Howe and Major General Charles Grey, and Hessian general Wilhelm von Knyphausen. Also recounted are the deaths of two of André’s friends at the Battle of Germantown, Brigadier General James Agnew and Lieutenant Colonel John Bird, the latter of whom André calls, “a veteran of the greatest merit, & most estimable character.”

The letter also demonstrates André’s firm grasp of not only the conduct of the Philadelphia campaign and the disposition of the enemy, but also the attitudes and physical abilities of his own troops, adding to the narrative of André as a professional soldier, rather than just a spy, as he is more widely remembered. The letter was a gift of Robert L. McNeil, Jr., in 2006.