The Loy family papers consist primarily of genealogical records that document the history of the descendants of Martin Loy I. The emphasis of the collection is on family branches most directly related to Peter Schell Loy including those of Margaretta Hoffman, wife of Martin Loy I; Elizabeth Ferguson, wife of Martin Loy II; Annie Mortimer Ferguson, mother of Elizabeth Ferguson; Emily Hayes Arndt, wife of Peter Schell Loy; Jacob Edward Drescher, husband of Charlotte Watson Loy; Charles Hannon, husband of Annah Loy; and V.S. Baird, husband of Mary Wilcox Loy. Other family lines included are those of Elizabeth Loy Davis, Edward T. Kurtz, and William Maxwell Stuart. The papers are not strictly limited to the Loy family genealogy; they also include material on the family of General William Dickenson because of that family's long association with the Loys in De Pere and because General Dickenson was considered to be the founder of De Pere. There is also a small amount of material related to the experiences of De Pere residents who joined the California gold rush in the early 1850s.
The papers include typed copies of family correspondence; correspondence with libraries, archives, and government offices related to Peter S. Loy's genealogical research; photographs of family members and the city of De Pere; plat maps showing the location of Peter S. Loy's land holdings; newspaper clippings; postal cards; and notes by Peter S. Loy. All of the material is contained in scrapbooks comprising three volumes and the entire collection has been retained in its original order.
