Sailing ship cards have been identified as the earliest form of multi-color advertising in the United States. Printed to announce the departure of commercial ship sailings for both passengers and freight companies, the ephemeral nature of these cards makes them very rare. The collection contains 1,296 cards, 1,193 of which are unique, and 103 of which are duplicates.

The William Wyman Henry Papers contain correspondence between William Wyman Henry and his wife, Evaline, and other family members, Henry's ship journals, research about the clipper ship era, and some personal books belonging to William Henry and his son.