The George A. Plimpton Papers consist largely of personal and professional correspondence, financial and real estate records, personal diaries and albums, writings, and lectures produced by or for George Arthur Plimpton. But the Papers also contains not only the correspondence and records of Plimpton's colleagues at Ginn and Company, the publishing house that Plimpton led for decades, but also correspondence and records relating to the dozens of other institutions and organizations that Plimpton helped lead. In addition to extensive correspondence relating to Plimpton's collecting of rare books, manuscripts, and historical artifacts, the Papers also contain such diverse items as autographs of presidents, handwriting specimens, studies of medieval manuscripts, and documents relating to the American slave trade.

Jacques Judah Lyons, hazzan, rabbi and community leader, was born in Surinam and emigrated to Philadelphia in the early 1800s. Minister of the New York Congregation Shearith Israel for 38 years, he gathered extensive materials on early Jewish history in the United States, Canada and the West Indies. His papers include manuscripts, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, notebooks, photographs and a Sansom ship's log book. Contains material relating to Jews in North and South America generally and more specifically to Congregation Shearith Israel and the Jews in New York, the Touro Synagogue and cemetery and the Jews in Newport, Rhode Island, Philadelphia and the West Indies. Also contains material relating to Jews in the wars of the United States, correspondence of the Jews with George Washington and items relating to Haym Salomon. Collection consists of manuscript material and five notebooks and three scrapbooks of Lyons. Contains also material not listed in calendar consisting of sermons by Lyons, a manuscript prayer book used in Surinam and a guide for religious ceremonies at Congregation Shearith Israel, as well as letters written during the Civil War period and correspondence relating to the personal life and career of Lyons.