The letters Ruschenberger wrote to his mother describe his career and experiences in the United States Navy and provide a sketch of life in Valparaiso, South America, in 1827. There are also small collections of letters received by Ruschenberger from his wife and mother. The remainder of the collection is composed of letters received by Ruschenberger from various, mostly obscure, correspondents, presumably friends and acquaintances. There are occasional references to his published works, notably the 1844 letter from Philadelphia publisher, John Grigg. The only material with medical content is the series of letters from John Styles, a New York physician.
Styles gives a personal account of a bout with dysentery and a cataract operation.
Refer to the attached calendar for details. The personal correspondence of W. S. W. Ruschenberger was purchased by the Historical Collections of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia from Xerxes Fine and Rare Books and Documents in 1988. Xerxes purchased the collection from Michael R. Linehan of Albany, New York. The collection was processed and catalogued in 1989.