The Kate W. Searcy Papers have been divided into 8 series: Family History; Correspondence, 1891-1934; Teaching Career, 1884-1902; Writing Career, 1882-1925; Miscellany, 1853-1953; Volumes; Certificates; and Photographs. The bulk of the material in the collection dates from 1882 to 1926.

The majority of the correspondence is composed of letters written by I.B. Warthen to his daughter Kate and granddaughter Lucile. They mainly discuss family matters, as well as the production of his laying hens, the number of coyotes he has trapped, and often relates the prices received for farm products. He also writes of happenings in and around Lakin, such as floods, prairie fires, epidemics, and a sugar beet company that brought in foreign workers as well as keeping Kate informed about family members still residing in Indiana.

Also included in the correspondence series are typescripts of letters to E.C. Searcy from David L. Spotts, historian for the 19th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. The letters discuss General George Armstrong Custer's Washita campaign. The original letters are in the Western History Collections at the University of Oklahoma in Norman.

Material concerning Kate's teaching career includes letters of recommendation written for Kate, teaching certificates, teaching contracts, invitations to the 1885 and 1886 Cherokee County, Kansas education conventions, and various papers from Kate's tenure as County Superintendent.

Kate's writing career series is composed of a variety of material. Included is an handwritten contract between W.H. Mundy, publisher of the Burlingame Echo, and Warthen for Kate to act as editor of the National Echo from 1890 to 1893. Also included are three issues of the National Echo from 1890. Kate also acted as a correspondent for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and some material relating to this work is included.

While the collection does not contain any diaries, several fragments from Warthen's 1886 diary are included. Some of these include notes added by Kate's daughter, Lucile, and relate Civil War experiences of Kate's father, I.B. Warthen, who served with Company H of the 79th Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The rest deal with Kate's everyday life, teaching, and homesteading.

Also included in the collection are articles, poems, and songs written by Kate. Same are in manuscript form, others were retained in printed form. The collection contains copies of various magazines in which Kate's articles appeared.

The miscellany series contains a variety of material about Kate and her family. One folder contains typescripts of letters written by and to Kate's father-in-law, Daniel P. Searcy, who was a circuit preacher in Tennessee. The typescripts were made by Lucile and include explanatory notes. The original letters were sent to the Boston Avenue Methodist Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Mainly they are from girlfriends before he was married and speak in a flowery manner about friendship and the pros and cons of marriage. They also discuss various friends who are also preachers or who are planning to move to Texas.

Another folder contains material about Kate's father, I.B. Warthen. Included are an essay on antelope, a brief account of the capture of a spy near Murfreesboro during the Civil War, and sketches of Warthen's house and property in Kansas.

The folder on Kate's property contains receipts for taxes from the Hamilton County Treasurer, 1891-1895, and the patent for her homestead. Her homestead certificate, dated October 31, 1892, can be found at RH MS Q53, along with a certificate authorizing her to practice law in Kansas; a certificate from the Order of the Eastern Star can be found at RH MS R29.

Also included in the miscellany series are the New Christian Hymn and Tune-Book, which belonged to Kate's grandmother, Martha Custis Bragg Warthen, and one issue of the Acme Haversack of Song and Patriotic Eloquence.

Volumes, including a receipt book and autograph albums, are located at RH MS A41 and RH MS AK10. Photographs of Kate and other family members have been separated from the manuscript collection and are located at RH MS-P 34.