Both personal and professional papers are present in this collection which covers the period 1871 to 1999. The papers are arranged into three series: Personal Papers, Speeches, and Professional Papers.

The PERSONAL PAPERS include family journals and scrapbooks as well as scrapbooks kept by Fairchild concerning his judicial career. The family journals describe vacations at the family cottage in Conesus, New York, between 1879 and 1934. These journals describe daily activities and experiences, the weather conditions, and the interaction of family members. Prominent in the journals is J.M. Edwards, Thomas Fairchild's maternal grandfather and president of Merchants and Farmers National Bank who was a prominent business, civic, and religious figure in Dansville, New York. The family scrapbooks (1871-1930) of news clippings and letters were compiled by J.M. Edwards and document both current events and significant events of various family members. One volume is devoted entirely to the Faulkner trial, documenting the failure of the First Financial Bank, a “Black Friday” for Dansville, New York.

The scrapbooks compiled by Fairchild highlight his reelection to the Supreme Court, his appointment to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in 1966, and his retirement in 1981. Most of this material consists of news clippings but the volume regarding his retirement includes news clippings, ephemera, photographs, and letters and cards. Included here is a letter from Fairchild to President Ronald Reagan informing him of his retirement and the President's response.

An oral history interview (1999) conducted by the Circuit Executive Collins Fitzpatrick is also included here. In this volume Fairchild discusses his life and some of the important cases on which he sat. It is also available in the Wisconsin Historical Society Library.

The SPEECHES series (1948-1988) comprise the most continuous and complete part of these papers. They are arranged alphabetically by title, event, or subject and often include research and other supplemental materials such as pamphlets, booklets, newspaper clippings, articles, notes, drafts, letters, index cards, etc. Also included is a report (1989) by Fairchild describing his travels in the Soviet Union and Finland in 1988 as a member of a delegation of 18 American judges. Additionally, there are notes on index cards (undated) which include some Supreme Court humor, anecdotes, and thoughts.

The PROFESSIONAL FILES principally document his work as a Chairman of the Constitutional Revision Commission in Madison (1960-1965) and his work sitting for the appeal case of the Chicago Seven conspiracy trial (1968-1974). The papers relating to the Constitutional Revision Commission include legislative reference bureau bulletins, papers and reports, news clippings, correspondence among commission members and other interested parties, a few letters of opinion from concerned citizens, and the report to the governor submitted on September 24, 1965. An earlier draft of that report and related revisions and approvals of the commission are also present.

The documentation regarding the appeal of the Chicago Seven conspiracy case (1968-1974) compose an important part of these papers and consist of official correspondence among the active members of the court, judicial documents, notes, indexes, outlines, papers, and drafts pertaining to the trial. Topics such as constitutionality, demeanor of the trial judge and prosecutors, “overt acts” of the defendants, and sufficiency of evidence are evaluated.