The materials in the collection consist of handwritten letters notifying friends and family of a death, a few wedding invitations, pattern for a skirt and a recipe. A list of people in several villages are noted at the end signifying to whom the notice should be passed. The collection is helpful in understanding funeral practices in the Mennonite community, verifying and supplementing vital records already recorded in church and government sources. In addition some information as to the residents of some villages can be gleaned. Most common villages mentioned in the letters include Schoenweise, Reinland, Kronsfeld, Blumenfeld, Haskett, and Gnadenthal.