Papers consist mainly of letters, some written over a period of time in diary form, from Wood to his wife, Phebe, son Oliver, and daughter Sarah in Auburn, Cayuga County, New York. Letters concern his journey (January-February 1865) by steamer from New York City to Mexico via Havana, his consular duties, his unofficial business drawing up affidavits and other legal documents for private individuals, his living arrangements, the manners and customs of the people of Matamoros, the social disorganization in the border towns resulting from the American Civil War and the disbanding of the Confederate Army in the Trans-Mississippi Department and from the warfare between the guerilla forces of Juárez and the Imperial troops of Maximilian, and the plight of refugees from both conflicts; also mentioned are the Mexican reaction to Lincoln's assassination, the horror of military executions he witnessed, his impressions of Holy Week observances in Matamoros, his frequent visits to Brownsville, Texas after the town was occupied by northern troops and his association with Union Army officers there, the stationing in southern Texas of Negro troops under the command of Major-General Godfrey Weitzel, and his intense homesickness.

Also included are shipping notices for merchandise sent from New Orleans to Matamoros; statements sworn to by merchants and certified by Wood that the sale of these goods will not cause harm to the United States; copies of receipts signed by Wood for compensation received from the U.S. Department of the Treasury; a letter (April 6) from F.W. Seward, Assistant Secretary, Department of State, recognizing Wood's extraordinary position in light of the uprisings in Mexico; and incoming correspondence dealing with official business, including an undated letter (in Spanish) from the Spanish vice-consul reporting that a Spanish subject had been ambushed and killed by bandits near Edinburg, Texas and asking Wood to place the matter before the military authorities in Brownsville. Also, prints of photographs of Amzi and Oliver Wood.