This collection consists of the personal papers of Ada Campbell Larew and includes manuscripts, historical essays, poems, plays, and short stories authored by Larew. Also available are personal correspondence, press clippings, and memorabilia.

Larew authored a handwritten, one hundred and eighty-nine page manuscript entitled Heart of the Cumberland, the largest of the manuscripts included in the collection. The manuscript is a historical account of the East Tennessee region which Larew centered her interests and research around. In her essays, Larew gives accounts of the history of notable Knoxville buildings, the Cherokee Nation and its people, and Civil War battles such as the Battle of Fort Sanders. With subject matter ranging from Robert E. Lee and Tennessee statesmen to the Mayflower and Native Americans, Larew’s passion for poetry coincided with her historical interests as illustrated through her poems.