Peter Cooper (1791-1883) was a manufacturer, inventor, philanthropist, and founder of Cooper Union. Cooper's son-in-law Abram S. Hewitt (1822-1903) was a manufacturer, philanthropist, U.S. Representative from New York, and mayor of New York.

The collection, of which slightly more than 50% is books, documents the lives and work of Peter Cooper, Abram S. Hewitt, and their families. Included are correspondence, published and manuscript speeches and other writings, account books and other financial documents, photographs, and miscellaneous documents. Also included are books from Peter Cooper's personal library, and books, clippings, and other printed material about Cooper and Hewitt and their activities. Topics covered include Cooper and Hewitt family matters, property, Hewitt's mayoralty, Cooper Union, the Atlantic Cable for which Peter Cooper was a backer, women's suffrage, labor in New York City, Peter Cooper's inventions, and the railroad, iron and steel (including the Trenton Iron Company) and glue businesses in which Cooper or Hewitt or both were involved. Also included are minutes of the New York Electrical Society, 1896-1953.