The papers include the last will and testament (1826) of John Powell; and nine letters (1803-1846) and their typed transcriptions relating to John Leavitt Powell and his family, giving information about agricultural conditions in New York and Michigan. There is also a farm account book (1846-1887) containing a family record, and several receipts (1842-1843) of Joseph Priestley Powell, son of John L. Powell, who operated a farm in the township of Ronald, Ionia County, Michigan. Also included is a handwritten indenture dated February 26, 1853, between Joseph Powell and sixteen-year-old James Joyce. Finally, there is a family genealogy with explanatory notes and a family tree compiled by Ralph W. Powell (1970).