The Forbes family was active and successful in various commercial enterprises during the 19th century, including (but not limited to) the China trade. Therefore, there is a wealth of information for the social historian in this collection through its descriptions of life at sea, comparisons of English and American schools, and long letters from Forbes wives in America to their husbands in the Far East describing everyday life at home.

Scholars will also gain insight into American commercial relations with the Far East during this period, life in the Orient, and Francis Blackwell Forbes's studies of Oriental botany.