The core of this collection is drafts and published clippings of magazine articles and short stories by Joe McCarthy, written during his career as a freelance author, predominantly for Holiday, Cosmopolitan, and This Week. There is a particular focus on the Kennedy and Ford families, as well as Irish and Irish-American culture. In addition, there are reviews, correspondence, and other materials about McCarthy and his writings. His reporting notebooks and other research files offer a glimpse into McCarthy’s pre-writing process. The collection of works by others reflects McCarthy’s influence among other writers as an editor and collaborator.