The collection documents three generations of the Sutherland family, with most materials relating to the immediate family of Roderick Sutherland of Portland, Oregon. Included are three of Roderick Sutherland's diaries, including an account of his overland journey to Oregon in 1855; family correspondence, including letters written to and from Mary Emily Sutherland and her sons Curtis and Alfred; correspondence and accounts related to the estate of James Sutherland; a small quantity of documents of the McKenzie family; and biographical and genealogical information.