Charles Everett Roseberry joined the United States Army in 1942 in part because he was single whereas his brother, William Chester Roseberry, was married. Charles served overseas in Africa, Italy, France and Germany. William Roseberry was drafted into the Army in 1944 just months before the birth of his second son on D-Day. William served in Italy in the North Appenines and Po River campaigns.
Both brothers wrote regularly to their sister, Margaret Roseberry Lawton of Radford, Virginia who saved their letters for over 50 years before giving them to their children and grandchildren. The letters are not descriptions of the war, which would have been censored, but the concerns of two young men from a small southwest Virginia town finding themselves overseas and away from their families. Topics range from family matters to the capture or deaths of friends and a recurring theme is each brother's concern for the other.