The Stearns and Sprague Family papers document the activities of Dr. William Stearns (1754-1819), a Salem apothecary and grocer, and his father-in-law, shipping merchant and distillery owner Joseph Sprague (1739-1808). The collection also contains records of other family members. The papers of the Stearns and Sprague families have been cataloged as one collection due to the overlap of the families in real estate and other business ventures. This overlap was the partial result of William Stearns' marriage to Sarah White Sprague. The papers are divided into three series.

Series I. William Stearns (1754-1819) Papers contains correspondence, account books, and financial and legal papers. The records document William's apothecary and grocery store, and the shipping ventures in which he had a minor interest. Of note in the correspondence are letters concerning the 1791-1793 court case which William brought against the United States government. William sought compensation for the damage done to his father's Charlestown farm by American troops during the Revolution. (The Business and Personal Accounts contain William's financial statements drawn up for the court case.) Also of interest is correspondence directed to William as director of the Salem Turnpike and Chelsea Bridge Corporation, letters regarding the lease of property in Charlestown, and a 1792 letter concerning William Stearns and Jonathan Waldo's construction of a building on Jeffrey's corner (Essex and Washington Streets) in Salem. The bulk of the legal papers consists of land deeds and permits to sell liquor.

Series II. Joseph Sprague (1739-1808) Papers includes correspondence, account books, and financial and legal papers which document Joseph's shipping, distillery, and personal activities from 1764 to 1806. The correspondence contains merchant and masters' correspondence, a 1774 letter regarding construction of the schooner Molly, and personal correspondence to his daughter, Sarah. The financial papers include government bond accounts (1791) and accounts of the schooners Molly, Sacarrissa, and Ann, ships Hector and Pickering, and the brigantine Mary. The legal papers contain bills of sale for the schooner Polly and shares in the privateers brigantine Cabot and ship Columbus. Also of interest are pew and land deeds, including land deeded to Sarah (Sprague) Stearns and bills of sale for lands confiscated from loyalist William Brown.

Series III. Family and Miscellaneous Papers documents six generations of the Stearns and Sprague families. The papers include: household and farm receipts of Dr. William Stearns' father Peleg (1720-1780); Sarah White (Sprague) Stearns' (1764-1844) personal correspondence, accounts land deeds, and an 1827 lease of land to the town of Salem for the Bickford Street School; pew deeds and household, apothecary and grocer's receipts of William Stearns Jr. (1788-1865); real estate account books of William S. Stearns of Malden, Massachusetts; personal correspondence from Richard and Carrie Stearns on their trip through Italy and France, and while living in England; and land deeds of Sarah (Sprague) Stearns' grandfather, James White of Haverhill and Atkinson, New Hampshire. The miscellaneous family papers contain personal and business correspondence, accounts, deeds, and obituaries of Joseph E. (1752-1852), Samuel, Joseph G., Elizabeth, and S. J. Sprague, and Elizabeth (Harris), James White, Richard, Harriet, Caroline, William B., Joshua B., William S., and Sarah E. Stearns. Of interest is the 1718/9 will of Peter Harris, the father of Elizabeth (Harris) Swineton Stearns, and a letter received by Joseph E. Sprague describing a shipwreck off the coast of Guadeloupe (1823).

The miscellaneous papers include business and personal receipts of Andrew Wallis, essays, and accounts of the Boston Treasury Office (1782).