Droddy’s diary begins on May 17th, 1846 at Little Cow Creek in Jasper (now Newton) County. From there, he goes to muster in Jasper, but having missed the company, fellows them to Bevilport. From there, they take a boat down the Neches River to Beaumont, and from there, they travel to Galveston, Port Isabel, then up the Rio Grande as far north as Camargo. It concludes September 2nd, 1846.

The diary relates mainly camp experiences: hunting, gambling, singing, drinking, election of officers. When the company pauses in various towns, Droddy attends church services od different denominations (including Baptist, Methodist, and Catholic). While in Mexico, he describes the farms, houses, and clothes of the Mexican people. Droddy’s company seems never to have faced direct combat. They encountered some wounded men, had fighting in camp among their own men, and lost a few horses in a Mexican raid. The men did suffer though from mosquitoes, sea sickness, and an epidemic of measles.

Names mentioned in the diary include: General Zachary Taylor, Albert Sidney Johnston, Ephraim McLean, and Ralph Gilchrist.