This collection contains diaries of Elizabeth Cooper Matheson who moved with her family from Pleasantville, Pennsylvania, to Salem, Ohio in 1862, and to Riverside, Michigan in 1867.

The early entries include many observations on events of the Civil War. Matheson, a Quaker, also gives details of Quaker meetings and of the Temperance Society which she joined in 1862. In addition, she describes in detail the journey from Ohio to Michigan including the crossing of Lake Erie and Michigan.

The majority of Matheson's entries are about daily activities: washing, making butter, and house cleaning, and the day to day lives of siblings and parents.