The Elihu Thomson papers were owned by the Thomson Laboratory before being transferred to GE's Hall of History, which then merged with the Schenectady Museum in the late 90s. The original arrangement and description was performed by the Laboratory, and that order has been maintained through the collection's travels. As some point, probably at the Hall of History, the collection was placed in binder sleeves. The collection is described to the item level, divided up into small series.

The Rice Papers contains the working papers of Chester Rice, including correspondence, notes, articles, patents, publications and photographs. A small amount of the materials is biographical, and some appears to have been inserted into the collection by his family. There is also a small amount of biographical material about his father, Edwin Rice.