The William H. Gass Papers consist largely of his own manuscript material: manuscripts and proof material toward his books, drafts of various stories, essays, and reviews, interviews, and a miscellaneous assortment of notes and other materials. Also present is a substantial amount of professional correspondence, primarily with universities, magazines, and publishers, as well as with his colleagues in academia and in the literary community.

The Benjamin Taylor Papers includes correspondence with many American and European authors, as well as the manuscript version of his novel, Tales Out of School (1995) and his major work of nonfiction, Into the Open: Reflections on Genius and Modernity (1995). Also included is material towards the essay: “The Question of Jewishness and the Question of Writing: A Conversation with Edmond Jabès.”

The Jarvis Thurston Papers consist primarily of correspondence relating to Washington University's Department of English and its visiting writers program. The most significant part of the Thurston collection is the correspondence from James T. Farrell to Thurston and Van Duyn. These letters are of a more personal nature and often discuss literary matters such as Van Duyn's work. A small group of manuscripts, notably two drafts of a Thurston short story, "The Cross," is also included.