The collection contains manuscripts for various works of fiction and nonfiction by Richter: notes, notebooks, autograph and typescript manuscripts, galley proofs, related correspondence, clippings, and other background material for his trilogy The Trees (1940), The Fields (1946), and The Town (1950), collectively published as The Awakening Land (1966); the introduction and early drafts for The Sea of Grass (1937); outlines, notes on the Delaware Indian language, drafts, galley proofs, and early chapters entitled "My Enemy, My Son" for The Light in the Forest (1953); and corrected typescripts for The Grandfathers (1964) and A Country of Strangers (1966).

Additional material includes James Lee Barrett's screenplay of The Awakening Land, a chronology of the trilogy, several articles, four chapters from The Fields and a few early manuscript pages from The Lady (1957), notebooks on writing and various western topics, correspondence with Alfred Knopf (Richter's publisher), Paul R. Reynolds (both the father and son were Richter's literary agents), Erdmann N. Brandt (of The Saturday Evening Post), friends, literary associates, and readers. There is also a large selection of correspondence between Conrad Richter and his wife and daughter. Furthermore, there are miscellaneous notes and outlines for short stories and articles, including stories published in his Early Americana and Other Stories (1936), and personal journals (1925-1966), as well as four drawers of file cards on which Richter kept notes and ideas. The collection includes a fair amount of genealogical material on the Richter and Achenbach families, with items dating to the early 19th century.