The first of the journals in this collection recounts Joseph C. Strong's service in the U. S. Navy aboard the warship Trumbull as it escorted other ships from London to the Caribbean in 1800 and 1801. It tells of capturing ships, taking prisoners, and relieving them of their money. It also mentions eating a tasty fruit called Mamgeneele that turned out to be poisonous. Strong's tour was cut short because Thomas Jefferson was elected president and a Treaty of Peace was signed between the U.S. and France on October 18, 1800. Strong resigned his commission in May or early June of 1801 and visited his mother in Massachusetts.

The second larger journal tells of Strong's activities in and around Knoxville in 1816 as he helped to establish a Bible Society. It mentions many people by name, among them James White, David Crockett, and James Ervins. In addition to his efforts on behalf of the Bible Society, Strong treated many illnesses as he traveled around the Southeast. Both of these journals are typewritten copies of the originals.