The collection is comprised of letters which passed between members of the Hallstead family of Pennsylvania between the years of 1862 and 1910. The bulk of the collection is comprised of letters from Polly Ann (Pop) Hallstead to her brother Andrew, and letters to Polly Ann from her future husband, Nelson (Nels) Walker. In addition there are letters from Mr. Orrin Hallstead to his son Andrew, and a letter from Henry Hallstead (another of Orrin's sons) written from an Army camp during the Civil War.