The collection consists of the papers of W. W. Carl, a carpenter and farmer who lived in the area of Carlton, Oregon. The bulk of these papers consists of three diaries that Carl maintained from 1897 to 1905, which detail his activities, particularly his work in farming and carpentry. The diary for 1897 was written in a repurposed school record book, so some of its pages record the attendance of pupils at an unidentified school, most likely in Carlton. Other materials in the collection include a record book, which lists materials that were used in the construction of buildings that Carl helped to build in 1908, and contains a description of land that his mother, Mary J. Carl, willed to him; a loose copy of the description of land willed to Carl; and a volume of transcriptions of Carl's diary entries, produced by his great-grandson, John A. Beutler. The volume of transcribed entries includes an introductory page and an index of people referred to in the diaries, listing the dates of entries where they appear.