This collection includes correspondence to and from firearms manufacturers and experts, catalogs, brochures, and booklets from manufacturers of firearms, ammunition, and gun powders, and materials from a course he taught at the University of Wisconsin. Much of the collection focuses on Mathew's comprehensive book, Firearms Identification. Research data on firearms identification, including rifling specifications for thousands of firearms and photographs of firearms, test shells, and laboratory equipment are in the collection, along with book reviews and drafts of the book.