The collection consists of two manuscripts. Both manuscripts include a section called, "Circuit Rider, or Seven Sides of the Itinerancy." The theme of itinerancy is present throughout both manuscripts. The photocopy of the original manuscript is incomplete. Other topics within these manuscripts are sermons, sermon outlines, life during the Civil War, poems, and an obituary.

This collection contains information pertaining to the personal and professional life of Reverend James Jolene Loomis of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.The records reflect Loomis' service in the Civil War and his ministry in Southern Methodism. Also included are materials related to his daughter, found in the scrapbook. These papers contain sermon notes, letters, and documents regarding his children and grandchildren. The documents contain information regarding both the Civil War and Methodist teachings. The scrapbook also contains journal entries by Loomis along with printed items added by his daughter.

These papers document Reverend Ward's life while he was in seminary, serving as a pastor, and his subsequent death after the Second Battle of Bull Run during the American Civil War. Ward was a copious writer on a variety of subjects. The papers show his development as an individual which eventually laid the foundation for his personal conviction to serve actively in the war. There are some documents assigned to Mrs. Jane E. Ward, Pelatiah's wife, after his death.