The typescript diaries record the experiences of a member of Company F, Eighth Minnesota Regiment, during the Dakota Conflict and the punitive expeditions that followed it. Doud, who was born in Pennsylvania, was a stage driver living in Cannon Falls, Minnesota in 1860 (1860 U.S. Census, population schedules). The first section of the diary (September 1862-December 1863) contains accounts of the aftermath of the Dakota Conflict, particularly around New Ulm (Minn.) with graphic descriptions of Indian depredations; conflicts among the settlers; and liquor consumption by officers and enlisted men. The diary also provides accounts of the movement of the regiment (or parts of it) to Minnesota forts Snelling, Ridgely, and Ripley; stationing of troops in Princeton (Minn.) and Sunrise City (Minn.); descriptions of the weather; hunting and fishing expeditions; treatment of the troops by civilians; and army life in general.

Of interest are the descriptions of the Indian annuity payment made at the Chippewa Agency in Crow Wing (October 1863, pages 89-91); detailed information on Indian ceremonies, particularly the medicine dance; and a long discourse (pages 105-111) on white depredations against Indians, especially white male treatment of Indian women.

The entries for March-October 1864 describe Doud's participation in the Sully Expedition against the Dakota Indians. The regiment left Princeton (Minn.) in May and reached James River on June 15. Pages 163-165 contain descriptions of the battle of Killdeer Mountain and skirmishes that occurred while the regiment was crossing the Little Missouri River. The regiment eventually reached the Yellowstone River (August 12) and Fort Union (August 18) in Montana, and arrived back at Fort Snelling on October 15, 1864.

There are details on marches, number of miles covered each day, topographical descriptions, appearances of buffalo and antelope, and the troops' experiences with alkali water.