The collection is arranged in five series: DIARIES, FINANCIAL VOLUMES, CORRESPONDENCE, MISCELLANEOUS, and PHOTOGRAPHS.
The DIARIES are subdivided by writer (Dave, James, or Ralph Wood), and arranged chronologically thereunder. There are fifty-nine farm diaries written by Dave Wood, dating from 1865 to 1927. There are also nine diaries written by Dave's son, Jim Wood, primarily from 1888 to 1898 (but one isolated volume from 1879), with eleven missing years (1880-1887, 1890, 1895-1896). Twenty-six diaries were written by Dave's youngest son, Ralph Wood, from 1889 to 1927, with fourteen missing years (1894, 1896-1902, 1908-1909, 1912, 1915-1917). Common themes of the brief daily entries are weather, expenses, and farming. Each year is represented by one brief pre-dated volume with one to two days per page.
The FINANCIAL VOLUMES are arranged chronologically and consist of three ledgers and fifteen account books. Most of the entries in the ledgers were made daily. The work ledger, dated 1937, has a few pages in the back, with dates, that pertain to how many hours Ralph Wood worked and how much he was paid. The payroll ledger, dated 1885, contains an alphabetical listing of employees. The employee and produce ledger covers the years 1914-1915, 1921, and 1924. These records include breeding records, cream accounts, poultry income and expenses, and employee hours and costs. The fifteen account books are dated between 1875 and 1928. They cover various aspects of farming and household expenses. The owner of most of these volumes is unknown but, because of the “R” on the binding, they are assumed to be written by Ralph.
CORRESPONDENCE in the Wood collection has been organized chronologically and consists of personal and business letters from 1881 to 1923. Many of the personal letters are from C. S. Tull in Ravenna, Ohio. Business letters note then-current market prices, and discuss weather, crops, and financial matters, as do several of the personal letters.
Most notable among the MISCELLANEOUS materials is a Wood family history prepared by Elsie Wood; a 1992 newspaper article by Harold Wood; and a copy of the book Wisconsin Prarie (sic) Diary 1869-1879, written by Dave Wood, great-grandson of the original Dave Wood. These provide helpful backround and interpretive information on the collection.
PHOTOGRAPHS include many identified photographs of the family of Mary Parsons Wood, Dave Wood's wife, and the family of Jim Wood. The Jim Wood family photos also include the Olive Tull Collection (Olive Tull was Jim Wood's wife). In addition, there are also identified photographs of the Hook, Eaton, Lawson, Beirbauer, Weirick, and Jordan families, plus numerous identified and unidentified miscellaneous photos, including an unidentified tintype of a man and his dog that was found in Dave Wood's 1869 diary. Several dozen cyanotype blue photographs are dispersed throughout the collection. Two glass negatives and a cyanotype printed from one of these negatives are also included.
