Collection consists of 38 letters written primarily by John Wood Senior to family members in England. Many of these were written to a sister or sister-in-law and a few are addressed to his brother, Will Wood, a watchmaker and jeweller in London, including two in which Wood includes a list of trade supplies to order. Four letters are from John Wood's son, Peter Wentworth Wood. One letter is by John's wife, Anna. Contents include topics such as the country's economy, Canadian-British politics, the Woods' watchmaking and jewellery business, crops, slavery, and the American Civil War, as well as local Montreal news on subjects such as fires, the Victoria Bridge, a cholera outbreak, the 1856 Railroad Celebration, and a visit by the Prince of Wales. Letters also include family news, particularly of John Wood's children Peter, John, and Charles, seafaring disasters, gold mines, improvements in shipping in the St. Lawrence seaway and the Atlantic Ocean, the expansion of railroads, and the Atlantic Telegraph. Letters date between 25 November 1839 and 13 December 1867. One is a crossed letter.

Collection consists of programmes, guides, brochures, catalogues, and other ephemera from various world fairs and international exhibitions, including: Expo '86 Vancouver (1986), Expo '70 Osaka (1970), Exposition internationale in Paris (1937), Franco-British Exhibition (1908), Liverpool (1913), Exhibition universelle (1900), Latin-British Exhibition (1912), Canadian National Exhibition Toronto (1908), Golden Gate Exhibition (1939), New York World's Fair (1939), International Exhibition (1862), Irish International Exhibition (1907), New York Exhibition of the Industry of all Nations (1853), St. Louis World Fair (1904), Universal Exhibition Antwerp (1885), World's Columbian Exhibition in Chicago (1893), International Exhibition of 1876 in Philadelphia (1876), Chicago World's Fair (1934), and British Empire Exhibition (1924). The collection also includes postcards for various other world fairs and international exhibitions, and some country publications.

The World War I Clippings Collection consists of approximately 635 newspaper clippings and articles related to the First World War. Most of the clippings in this collection consist of daily reporting on troop movements and events that occurred during World War I, with some editorial and commentary pieces. Also included are clippings of maps, most from unidentified newspapers, and clipped recruitment ads. Specific topics include the sinking of the Lusitania, McGill participation in the war, the siege of Przemysl, Canadian troop deployments and casualties, and the Pope. The majority of the clippings come from the Montreal Gazette (approximately 140 clippings) and the Philadelphia Public Ledger (approximately 120 clippings). Around 50 clippings are from the The Evening Bulletin (Philadelphia) and a handful are from The Times (London). Also included are some articles from the D. A. W. War Tracts (numbers 5-7), Berlin, and the Journal of Commerce and Commercial Bulletin (New York). The fonds also contains a copy of the War Gazetteer, compiled by Charles McD. Puckette and Carrington Weems, issued by the New York Evening Post in 1914. The earliest article appears to be reporting on England's declaration of war on Germany, dated 5 August 1914.

The fonds consists of the records of the Zoological Society of Montreal for the entirety of its existence, from 1964-2016. These records were generated in the pursuit of the Zoological Society’s goal to enhance public awareness of wildlife conservation issues through speakers, film screenings, field trips, special events, and large projects. The records also reflect the Society's charity to zoological, ecological and conservation causes. The administration of the Society, its interactions with its members, and its projects and events are documented through minutes, correspondence, communications, published articles, financial documents, reports, and proposals. The Society’s interests and activities are also reflected through books, objects from their offices, audio and video materials, and 5243 photographs, most of which are stored in photo albums. The fonds also contains the records of the Zoological Society of Canada, which were created to administer the Canadian Society similarly to the Montreal Society, with the goal of expanding the organization’s reach nationally.

The fonds is comprised of the following series: 1) Activities (1965-2013); 2) Administration (1964-2016); 3) Artifacts (1980-2004); 4) Books (1967-1991); and 5) Newsletters (1967-2016).