The papers of William G. Eliot include diaries, letters, published works, published and unpublished sermons and talks, newspaper clippings of articles written by or about Eliot, photographs; and biographical and other material about Eliot. Also included in the collection are enslavement documents, which include letters and bonds of indemnity as Eliot purchased enslaved persons in order to emancipate them.

The Donald Finkel Papers include his extensive research materials, journals, notes, and heavily revised manuscripts. A large collection of editorial matter toward all of his books and a small, yet revealing professional correspondence with editors and literary colleagues completes the Finkel Papers.

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 Katherine Arnstein Heinemann Papers consist mainly of autograph and typescript drafts of her poems, as well as manuscript and editorial material relating to her collections Brandings (1988) and Some Inhuman Familiars (1983). A small group of correspondence is also present.

The Arthur C. Hoskins collection contains items directly related to Hoskins and his family, including correspondence and records of expenses, and also items related to Missouri Historical Society activities. Certain items, which are connected to material previously collected by Hoskins, but whose source is unknown, have been placed in the collection because of their convenient connection.