The Waters Family Papers includes the papers of Benjamin Waters (1720/1-1784) and his sons, grandsons, and other descendants. The collection is divided into ten series.

Series I. Benjamin Waters (1720/1-1784) Papers contains correspondence, shipping papers, and documentation of his management of the Salem/Beverly ferry. The bulk of this material is made up of bills and receipts from 1756 to 1798.

Series II. Joseph Waters (1758-1833) Papers contains papers from 1777 to 1836 that are mostly related to his shipping activities. Subseries A. Shipping Papers consists of papers of those of vessels that Waters owned or mastered. Of particular interest are the papers of schooner Abeona, which was involved in the African slave trade. The papers of the frigate Essex consist of letters and accounts relating to the building and outfitting of the vessel, which was managed for the Navy by Waters. Other noteworthy papers include Joseph G. Waters spoliation claims for schooner Swallow, which include one letter from Daniel Webster. The papers of brig Otter (owned by Joseph and William D. Waters) have been placed with William D. Waters' ships' papers. Correspondence with partners and merchant houses and letters concerning more than one ship are filed in the shipping correspondence.

Subseries B. Business and Personal Papers includes correspondence, business papers, estate papers, accounts, and receipts. The correspondence includes a series of 1799 letters to and from Samuel Bradford about French prisoners that had escaped from Boston and were captured in Salem. The Sea Fencibles papers contain documentation of an artillery company from elderly Salem volunteers for coastal defense in 1814.

Series III. Esther (1785-1870) and Martha Waters (1787-1855) Papers contains agreements, accounts, and receipts from 1835 to 1872. Many of these investments were maintained for them by their brothers William Dean Waters and Joseph Gilbert Waters.

Series IV. William Dean Waters (1798-1880) Papers, 1789-1880, includes shipping papers, business papers, personal papers, and personal papers of his wife Abigail (Devereux) Waters. Subseries A. Shipping Papers is comprised of records of ships owned, mastered, or supercargoed by Waters, whose vessels were mostly involved in trade with the East Indies and China. An interesting item among the papers of the brig Mermaid is a letter from Captain John Eagleston describing to William H. Neice, an Australian ship owner, the circumstances surrounding an attack upon Neice's vessel Sir David Ogilby by natives at the Fiji Islands in 1838. In the miscellaneous ships' papers is an 1840 letter from a crew member of the USS Vincennes giving a brief account of the United States Exploring Expedition. The shipping memorandum book contains accounts for brig Otter and a handwritten Malay dictionary. Trade memoranda give details of trade practice and currency exchange in a number of Asian, European, and South American ports.

Subseries B. Business Papers includes documentation of real estate transactions and three private enterprises, the Salem and Danvers Aqueduct, the Naumkeag Steam Cotton Company, and the Salem Turnpike and Chelsea Bridge Corporation. The Aqueduct papers contain land agreements, articles of incorporation, and a day book with notes on construction from 1839 and 1845. The business ledger (1835-1850) includes accounts for the three private businesses as well as material related to the James Devereux estate and brig Osprey.

Subseries C. Personal Papers and Subseries D. Abigail (Devereux) Waters (b. 1803) Papers include correspondence with family members on business or personal matters. Letters from William to Abigail were written during his shipping voyages (1824-1839) and while he was on their South Carolina cotton plantation (1863-1866). Letters from their son James D. Waters (1861-1865) contain vivid accounts of life on his cotton plantations in Louisiana during the Civil War. All family correspondence is filed with the recipient except where indicated otherwise. Papers from the estates of Daniel Gilbert and Edward Stanley are located here with documents from William's guardianship of Charlotte W. Gilbert.

Series V. William Crowninshield Waters (1830-1911) Papers is comprised of family correspondence, accounts, receipts, and printed matter. William's certificate of appointment as Collector of Customs for the Salem/Beverly district (1894) resides with the printed matter.

Series VI. James Devereux Waters (1832-1892) Papers, 1847-1890, contains his business and personal papers. The bulk of his business papers concern his cotton plantations in Louisiana. James and Gill Klapp leased several plantations, among them Ravenswood, Good Hope, and Tacony. Their records include correspondence between them, bills and receipts for purchase of supplies and sales of goods, labor salaries, and lists of Negro workers. Additional information concerning the activities of James, his brother Cliff, and Gill while in Louisiana are located in James' and Cliff's correspondence with their brothers and their uncle Langdon Williams. James' personal papers include diaries, correspondence with brothers Clifford C. Waters and Edward Stanley Waters and other relatives and family members, and account books and receipts.

Series VII. Edward Stanley Waters (1837-1916) Papers, 1840-1910 contains correspondence, financial papers, and genealogical notes. The bulk of the business papers contain Stanley's correspondence generated during his teaching years (1860-1876) and later while he managed bric-a-brac rooms in Chicago and New York. Also located here are letters with fellow literary society members. The correspondence includes absence excuses, recommendations for books to read, scheduling of lectures, and arrangements for the loan, purchase, or valuation of antique objects. Letters from pupils and business or society friends which are of a more personal nature are located in correspondence with friends.

Stanley's personal papers contain correspondence including letters from his family, cousins, aunts, and friends. Of interest here are the letters from his brother Cliff written from their plantations in South Carolina and Louisiana. The printed matter includes a Chicago Literary Club yearbook for 1909-1910.

Series VIII. Clifford Crowninshield Waters (b. 1840) Papers, 1856-1878, includes his diaries, correspondence with family, friends, relatives, and business associates, as well as notes, poetry, account books, and printed matter.

Series IX. Relatives' Papers, 1846-1865, contains miscellaneous Waters family papers.

Series X. Miscellaneous Papers contains shipping papers, correspondence, and legal documents. Most of the legal documents are deeds for property outside Essex County.