Through 1942, the Trustee Committee on Books had final say on Library collection development policies and acquisitions. Librarians W. N. C. Carlton and George B. Utley corresponded frequently with Book Committee members Horace H. Martin, Frederic Ives Carpenter, A. C. McLaughlin, John A. Spoor, Horace S. Oakley, W. A. Craigie, and C. J. Hambleton regarding particular purchases and the direction of Library acquisitions.

Primarily correspondence, but also reports, memoranda, minutes, acquisitions lists, and expenditure reports. Includes Librarians' correspondence, as well as recommendations and reports of curators Pierce Butler, Ernst F. Detterer, and Robert S. Forsythe.