This collection houses an assortment of letters and ephemera documenting the Foster and Cheatham families. The majority of the letters are addressed to Ellen (Foster) Cheatham and deal primarily with such family matters as weddings and deaths. Ephraim writes letters to Ellen discussing the health and eventual death of Jane, Ellen's mother and Ephraim's wife. Other siblings write to her relaying news of their lives. There is much discussion of Nashville, as well as Philadelphia and Washington D.C. One letter is written on embossed Ashwood School letterhead. The Ashwood School was a girls' school in Maury County, Tennessee, which burned down around 1850. Some letters discuss societal differences between the North and the South. One letter expresses disgust that Union Army is composed of free soldiers.

This collection also contains several other pieces. The first of these is a speech that Ephraim Foster delivered in the United States Senate on 1839 January 23. It discusses amending An Act Authorizing the State of Tennessee to Issue Grants and Perfect Titles to Certain Lands Therein Described and to Settle the Claims to Vacant and Unappropriated Lands Within the Same. This act was originally passed in April of 1806. The second item is a funeral oration by Ephraim H. Foster celebrating the life of Henry Clay McNairy. Foster made this address on 1853 July 28. The final piece is a woodcut print of Ephraim Foster. This print was used in the Clayton History of Davidson County.