The Ropes Family Papers document the business and personal activities of four generations of Nathaniel Ropes' descendants who inhabited the Ropes House at 318 Essex Street in Salem. The collection includes the papers of Nathaniel Ropes I (1692-1752), Judge Nathaniel Ropes II (1726-1774), Salem shipping merchant Nathaniel Ropes III (1759-1806), Sally Ropes Orne (1795-1876), Joseph Orne (1796-1818), Cincinnati merchant Nathaniel Ropes IV (1793-1885), and his children Nathaniel V (1833-1893), Sarah (1827-1899), Eliza (1837-1907), and Mary (1843-1903). The collection has been divided into seven series.

Series I. Early Ropes covers the years 1702-1815, and contains the personal and business records of Salem merchant Nathaniel Ropes I (1691-1752), his wife Abigail (Pickman) Ropes (1706-1775), their son Judge Nathaniel Ropes II (1726-1752), his wife Priscilla Sparhawk (1739-1778), their children Samuel, Jane, and John Ropes, and Sparhawk relatives. The account books of Nathaniel I, Nathaniel II, and Abigail Ropes contain accounts of their stores which were operated first on Washington Street, and later on Essex Street. Of interest in Nathaniel II's personal and financial papers is an account book of the committee to build a prison in Salem in 1764. The original 1769 deed for the Ropes house on Essex Street is filed with Nathaniel II's legal papers; there are also five of his judicial appointments located in box 19. Priscilla Ropes' papers include a household account book dated 1778, and letters from Sparhawk family members in Kittery, Maine. The folder of Reverend John Sparhawk's church papers relate to the dismissal of Reverend Samuel Fiske from the Salem First Church in 1738, the subsequent appointment of Reverend Sparhawk, and his salary disputes. The folder of miscellaneous papers (box two, folder two) contains Joseph Ropes 1815 Mediterranean passport for the ship Morgann, John Ropes' 1798 ship's papers for the brig Hind, and Hannah Ropes' 1803 copy of Jonathan Harradin's will.

Series II. Nathaniel Ropes III covers the years 1777 to 1831, and includes his business and personal records as well as the papers of his two wives, Sarah (Putnam) Ropes (1765-1801) and Elizabeth (Cleveland) Ropes (1757-1831). This series contains three subseries. Subseries A. Nathaniel Ropes contains the papers of Nathaniel Ropes III. The account books contain records for both his shipping partnership, Hussey and Ropes, and his own businesses. Nathaniel Coverly's stationary store was located in Ropes' Essex Street building, and Coverly's account book (box three, folder four) was evidently left behind when he moved to Charleston in 1802. The three boxes of Nathaniel Ropes receipts include receipts for Hussey and Ropes, Ropes' stores, and family expenses. Included in the undated receipts is a list of Hussey and Ropes debts. The 1803 to 1805 receipt book (box seven, folder one) also includes Ropes' manuscript songbook. His violin instruction book is filed with the miscellaneous papers (box seven, folder nine).

The correspondence includes Hussey and Ropes merchant house correspondence as well as numerous letters regarding the estates for which Nathaniel Ropes was acting as executor. Filed in the shipping papers (box seven, folder five) are miscellaneous documents for the following vessels: Betsey (Brig), Cato (Privateer), Cicero (Brig), Hannah (Schooner), Joseph's Brother (Schooner), Light Horse (Ship), Louisa (Sloop), Lucy (Schooner), Nancy (Schooner), Olive Branch (Ship), Polly (Schooner), Polly (Privateer), Sally (Schooner), Satisfaction (Schooner), Silvanus (Brig), Success (Schooner), and Two Brothers (Sloop). The folder of Salem sheep pasture papers contains Ropes' records as a member of the committee of proprietors including legal papers, two memorandum books, and meeting records. Subseries B. Sarah (Putnam) Ropes contains the papers of Nathaniel II's wife, Sarah (Putnam) Ropes. Filed after Sarah (Putnam) Ropes' papers are the estate papers of her father, Dr. Eben Putnam (1717-1788), for whom Nathaniel Ropes acted as executor. Subseries C. Elizabeth Cleveland Ropes contains the papers of Elizabeth Cleveland Ropes, Nathaniel III's second wife. Elizabeth Ropes' account books and receipts contain records for the Danvers farm, and 1807 renovation of the Ropes house, and the expenses of her three stepchildren.

Series III. Orne Family covers the years 1811 to 1876, and contain papers of Joseph Orne (1796-1818), Sally (Ropes) Orne (1795-1876), Elizabeth Ropes Orne (1818-1842), and Abigail Ropes (1796-1839). It contains three subseries. Subseries A. Joseph Orne contains the papers of Joseph Orne. His correspondence includes letters from Harvard University classmates Willliam Henry Moulton, Stevens Everett, and John G Palfrey. The folder of receipts (box nine, folder four) documents the expenses of outfitting their first house at the time of their marriage in 1817. Also included are receipts listing books purchased from Reverend John Prince's estate for Orne's extensive library. The folder of writings contains copies of lectures, essays, poems, eulogies, and two notebooks of Biblical explications.

Subseries B. Sally Ropes Orne contains the papers of Sally Orne. Her correspondence contains letters to her stepmother and brother, letters from relatives Margaret Prescott and Margaret Emery, and Salem friends Humphrey Devereux, Reverend Charles Upham, and Reverend Charles Sewell. Of particular interest are copies of the letters written by Sally and Elizabeth Orne on a trip to visit Nathaniel IV in Cincinnati, from 1838 to 1840. Also of note is the February 26, 1829 letter from A.E. Cleveland describing a ball given for the British minister in Washington, and Humphrey Devereux's April 27, 1834 letter describing the White House. The papers relating to the guardianship of Elizabeth Orne (box 10, folder two) document Sally's questioning her uncle Jonathan Hodge's handling of Elizabeth's financial affairs, and replacing him with Benjamin Merrill as guardian. The miscellaneous papers include poems written and copied by Sally after the death of her daughter. Subseries C. Elizabeth Orne contains the papers of Elizabeth Orne, which consist primarily of school notebooks, sermon books, pencil sketches, watercolors, and commonplace books. Of interest is the diary kept on her trip to Cincinnati from 1839 to 1840, which describes a visit to the Mt. Lebanon, New York Shaker settlement.

Series IV. Nathaniel Ropes IV covers the years 1805 to 1876, and contains the business and personal papers of Nathaniel Ropes IV (1793-1885) and his wife Sarah (Brown) Ropes (1807-1873). The letter books and unbound letters contain both personal and business letters, and document Ropes' various moves and business ventures in the West. Numerous letters concern Swedish theologian Emmanuel Swedenborg and his theology. Of interest are copies of correspondence between Ropes' cousin Margaret Prescott and the minister Samuel Worcester on various religious issues (box 14, folder three), and Ropes' correspondence with the prominent Swedenborgian George Bush (1796-1859) about his writings (volume 15). Included in the financial records are several early banknotes, 1814 to 1838 (box 14, folder six), issued by banks in Cincinnati, Lexington, and Louisville. Also included in this series are a number of titles and deeds, most of which are for property in Ohio and Kentucky, including his cemetery plot. It is possible that some of the titles and deeds belonged to his son, Nathaniel Ropes V, but that is not easily discernable due to the dates. Contained in the miscellaneous and personal papers are membership certificates, advertisement cards from Nathaniel Ropes' Lard Oil Company, poems, and a copy of the eulogy delivered at Ropes' funeral in 1885.

Series V. Nathaniel Ropes V and Ropes Sister covers the years 1847 to 1904, and contains papers of Nathaniel Ropes V (1833-1893), and his sisters Sarah Putnam (1827-1899), Eliza Orne (1837-1907), and Mary Pickman Ropes (1843-1903). Nathaniel Ropes V’s papers include deeds, titles, receipts and letters. The deeds and titles are for property in Ohio and Salem, Massachusetts. The Ropes sisters’ papers and printed ephemera document their various social and club activities in Cincinnati and Salem where they moved in 1893. The folder of financial and legal records contains copies of Sarah and Mary Ropes’ wills. There are also deeds and titles, in which Mary was listed as a trustee. Of note in the folder of printed material is the brochure used to purchase the Magee stove for the Ropes' kitchen, and a small collection of Civil War patriotic envelopes.

Series VI. Miscellaneous Ropes Family includes genealogy records, unidentified poetry, printed materials, deeds, and envelopes found in the collection. The genealogical notes relate to the Ropes, Sparhawk, and Putnam families.

Series VII. Ropes House contains photographs, surveys, and blueprints of the Ropes house. Daguerreotypes and a carte de visite photograph album of the Ropes family and house are not included in this collection; they are located at the Ropes house. The photo albums of the interior and exterior of the house were made after the Ropes house became a museum in 1912. Included in this series are two photographs of Edward S. Morse given by Morse to the Trustees of the Ropes Memorial.