The major part of this collection consists of letters written to Mary Carter in Newburyport, Massachusetts, from her friend Hannah Tracy Emery, in Exeter, New Hampshire, along with a few letters from Mary to Hannah between the years 1787-1793. The correspondence began when Mary was 21 and Hannah was 16 years old. The letters discuss social events, courtship and marriage of mutual friends, and visits to acquaintances. Several letters deal with loss of family and friends. The collection also includes letters to and from various members of the Cutts family and the correspondence of Cecil Hampden Cutts Howard, the great-grandson of Mary (Carter) Cutts. These letters illustrate the almost total dependence of females upon the male members of their families, not only for financial support but as escorts and carriers of correspondence.

Also included is a poem written in honor of Hannah, probably by Mary Carter, with an appended note that Hannah T. Abbot died December 6, 1793. Her death was eight months after her last letter. Additional letters to Mary Carter and Mary (Carter) Cutts from friends and relatives are included in the collection. Of particular interest is a letter from Elizabeth Smith, dated December 6, 1791, written from Philadelphia. This describes the State House gardens, and the social scene in Philadelphia, then the nation's capital, events which include a levee held by the Washingtons.

The collection also contains miscellaneous letters mostly to and from members of the Cutts family from 1722 to 1822. One undated and unsigned letter alludes to the illness of Hannah Emery's mother, and thus was probably written prior to 1787. Two letters from Joseph Ward to Samuel Cutts (November 18 and 28, 1772) asking Cutts' support in his attempts to obtain an official position in New Hampshire from Lord Dartmouth in England may be of interest.

This collection will be particular interest to those studying elegies and memorial poetry of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Several examples, written for the deaths of family and friends of the Cutts family, are included along with copies of engravings, one of which depicts General William H. Harrison. All are undated and the authors of these writings unknown. The collection also provides insight into the precariousness of life and health in the 18th and early 19th centuries.

The collection also includes letters to and from Cecil H. Cutts Howard, the great-grandson of Mary (Carter) Cutts and the donor of the collection, written between 1874 and 1917. Most of the correspondence discusses his research about family genealogy, along with letters from publishers and historic societies concerning publication or purchase of his writing. A copy of Howard's letter of January 20, 1917, provides a list of the documents he sent to the Essex Institute for the "Cutts Howard Mss Collection."