A considerable amount of material in this collection relates to Grand Rapid’s earliest pioneers. Several of the published books contain intimate details of these first settlers who were Emily Burton Ketcham’s parents and their relatives. The scrapbooks are filled with newspaper clippings of early settler’s obituaries and reunions. Photographs can be found of many of these individuals as well. EBK’s and her husband’s genealogy, including their descendants and ancestors, are well documented in sources throughout this collection’s series. An interesting tangent of the collection is a group of early material on the Partridge family. This is the family of EBK’s only child, Harry’s second wife (Sarah Partridge Ketcham).

The best source of information on Emily Burton Ketcham’s suffrage activity is the second scrapbook. Newspaper articles relate everything from an appearance at a meeting by EBK to a full text of a speech given by her. This scrapbook contains literature pertaining to other suffragists. Also found in this scrapbook is some personal correspondence to EBK from other suffragists, including Caroline Bartlett Crane. The best synopsis of EBK’s life is found in the booklet compiled by her friend, Mary Doe, on the occasion of EBK's death.