This collection contains textual records relating to various issues and information on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Two-Spirit and Queer history including: Comprehensive Works, Bibliography, Reference; Gay/Lesbian Life, Lifestyles & Concerns; Literature & Language; Visual & Performing Arts; History & Gay/Lesbian Liberation Movement; Behavioral Sciences; Social Sciences; Philosophy & Religion; Physical & Natural Sciences; and AIDS-Related Information. It also includes an extensive moving image and sound collection, including oral histories and episodes of the cable access program "Coming Out."

Most of the records consist of letters written to Mark Young Stark and his wife, Agatha, in Dundas. Correspondents include friends and family in Scotland or friends and colleagues in Upper Canada. Of the Scottish letters, those from Stark’s stepmother (Mary Bannatyne) and aunt (Grace Young) are the most numerous. Some letters predate Stark’s immigration to Canada in 1833. Other letters were written to his wife and to their daughter, Mary Ann, after Stark’s death in 1866. Topics addressed in the letters revolve around personal and family news but occasionally touch on current events, including politics and ecclesiastical affairs.