Primarily original manuscripts dated in 1781. Single letters by James Fairlie, George Gibson, Thomas Jefferson, William North, and two by Baron Friedrich W. von Steuben relate to Clark's emergency service in helping to repel the British invasion up the James River in January. The rest of the papers directly or indirectly pertain to plans and preparations for Clark's Detroit expedition and to the final abandonment of this project. Among the papers are several letters (January-February) from Jefferson giving instructions to Clark, Clark's commission as brigadier general, his speech to the Kentucky officers and the minutes of the subsequent meetings in Louisville (September 6-7) at which they voted against an offensive campaign, and the report (December) of the Virginia House of Delegates withdrawing support from the Detroit project. Many letters and related papers concern supply problems, military rivalries, and the unpopularity of the proposed expedition among the Virginia and Pennsylvania militiamen. There are numerous allusions to Indian raids and threats in the Ohio Valley, particularly Kentucky. One letter (May) by Archibald Lochry assured Clark of his willingness to join the campaign, but there are no papers on the defeat of Lochry and his troops when surprised by warriors under Joseph Brant's command. Letters (April-May) from Clark's brother Richard and from Joseph Hunter and William Shannon brought news of the critical situation at Fort Jefferson a few months before its abandonment. La Balme's defeat was mentioned in a letter (January) from Daniel Maurice Godefroy de Linctot. Later letters (July-August) from Linctot and Charles Gratiot gave Clark news of affairs in St. Louis and reports of the capture of Natchez and Pensacola by the Spaniards. Cornwallis's defeat was noted in letters (October-November) by Jonathan Clark, Isaac Craig, and John Crittenden. On a social note amid so many military problems, John Gibson (July 2) issued an invitation to Clark to join in the “Celebration of the Anniversary of our Glorious Independence” at Fort Pitt.

Among the military documents are: a record of a court-martial (July) at which James Thomson was convicted of horse theft and desertion and sentenced to run the gauntlet through the brigade, signed by Zachariah Morgan and Clark; a deposition (August) by James Ballinger describing his capture by Tawa Indians in March and his observations on the garrison and fortifications in Detroit during his imprisonment there, recorded and signed by John Montgomery; a muster roll (December) of the Illinois Regiment under Montgomery's command; and a certificate of service issued (December) for Leonard Helm. Clark's correspondents represented most frequently (four or more letters each) are Daniel Brodhead, John Floyd, John Gibson, and Thomas Jefferson. Other correspondents not previously mentioned include Hugh M. Breckenridge, Arthur Campbell, Gabriel Cerré, Joseph Crockett, Philip Dejean, John Hackenwelder, Benjamin Harrison, David Kennedy, J. M. P. Legras, Benjamin Logan, Timothy de Montbrun, John Montgomery, Richard Peters, Joseph Reed, George Slaughter, James Sullivan, Abraham Tipton, John Todd, and John Williams. Concluding the volume are notes abstracted by Draper in 1846 from the records of Jefferson County, Kentucky, for the years 1781-1785.