The Edwin Hurlbut Papers cover the years 1834-1903 and consist of correspondence, legal documents, and printed material. Of special interest in the correspondence is an October 1854 letter from Sam Ryan reuniting Whigs and conservative Democrats in a temperance political organization to oppose the Maine Law; an 1862 letter from John Lockwood, Milwaukee postmaster and a former Know Nothing, re Hurlbut's appointment as delegate to the nominating convention; various letters from the Hurlbut family and J. C. Brown in 1848-1849, meant to lure Hurlbut from Michigan by describing opportunities in eastern Wisconsin; and correspondence about Hurlbut's wartime service and letters from his men to him.
The legal materials contain certificates, some contracts, and a few court records concerning suits in which Hurlbut was involved.
The printed materials contain an 1856 platform of the American Party of Wisconsin, a Temperance song book, and a Masonic handbook.
