This commonplace book consists of brief writings and observations on agriculture, arts and manufactures, commerce, the army and navy, canals and roads, weights and measures, general politics, finance, and population. It includes a sketch of the Battle of Quebec groundworks and layout.

Though the Miscellaneous Manuscripts collection is composed of items that do not fall readily into any other existing collection, the two dominant intellectual areas represented in the collection are Early American History and History of Science.