This collection contains yearly diaries of two sisters, Celia Smith Kelm (1882 - 1966) and Rena Smith Murray (1899 - 1996), lifelong residents of Port Dickinson, Broome County, New York. Celia wrote from 1920 to 1966 and Rena wrote from 1926 to 1990 with some years missing in each of the sisters' diary collections.

Each sister wrote about a range of topics. Everyday family life, managing households, working, and socializing with relatives and friends, are discussed over the years. Local happenings and national news events of that year are mentioned, but many are not elaborated on in multiple entries unless it affected their lives. Celia does refer to more world events at the time, especially during WWII.

Oftentimes each sister kept a list of special events and dates that happened throughout the year in the front or back of the book. In addition, Celia sometimes wrote on the inside cover, drew an asterisk at the top of the entry, or put notes in the margins of important events. Rena also marks special topics with an X and writes importants events at the top of the daily entry.

Everyday happenings, such as cleaning, laundry, gardening, knitting, keeping track of bills, and home repairs are recorded along with visiting friends and family. Special occasions, holidays, and trips are also noted. Local restaurants and shops, especially in Binghamton and surrounding areas are featured. Many trips are taken to Fowler's, Sisson's, Resnicks and McLean's, as well as going to a show or movie at The Strand, The Star, or the Binghamton Theater. Downtown Binghamton establishments, some no longer here, were popular spots to visit. Other places of note include the Masonic Temple, Your Home Public Library, Y.W.C.A, the Oakdale Mall, and Boscov's. Shopping and hair permanents fill many entries, along with the types of clothes that were bought or made. The diaries from the Binghamton stores, Hills McLean & Haskins (Ready Reference Diaries), contain clothing and fashion ads, as well as almanac-like facts and tips.

Numerous diary entries discuss people's health and the diseases and illnesses one had. In the earlier diaries, if someone was sick often the doctor was called to the house and that person stayed in bed. Frequent bouts of grippe, headaches, and tooth extractions occur along with occasional mention of cases of measles, tuberculosis and infantile paralysis. The health of their husbands and hospital visits are also recorded. The sisters experienced changing technologies of the time. Radios, converting from coal-fired appliances to gas-powered heat and hot water, the convenience of electrical appliances, buying new cars, and getting a television set are important milestones in their lives. In addition, Celia and Rena kept detailed accounts of their expenses, including doctor bills, taxes, husband's salaries, and investments. Rena, especially, kept note of her finances as well as lists of her knitting orders and how much she charged for each item.

Almost every entry has a note on the weather. Temperatures, storms, and special weather events are of special interest and helped shape the sisters plan or activities for that day. Local and national events are noted in the diaries, with differing levels of interest. Historic national events, such as the 1929 Stock Market Crash, the Depression, the United States entering WWII, astronauts going into space, and presidents passing away are mentioned in the diary entries. The sisters also write about local events as they happened in the community. Strikes, floods, elections, food shortages, and rationing are just some of the occurrences brought up in their writings. Celia did pay more attention to political happenings, especially during WWII. Though she often stated she did not want to write about war, she kept track of the war's progress and some of the effects it had at home.

Celia and Rena continued to write well into their later life. Similar topics of visits with friends, eating out, playing card games, and going on trips are mixed with falls, failing health, and friends passing away.

Celia and Rena did put loose clippings, lists, and other papers in their diaries, though Celia had fewer papers in her diaries than Rena. Many of the items found taped or tucked in the diaries such as newspaper clippings, handwritten lists, cards, or letters, are rehoused in folders. Rena kept extensive lists of all her expenditures and bills. Some of her accounting lists are at the end of the diaries and other times she made lists on loose sheets of paper. On many of Rena's diaries a newspaper clipping or paper was taped over and covered an entry. That clipping had significance as to what she wrote about in her diary that day. In many cases, that clipping was an obituary and she wrote about who died. In those cases, the taped clippings were taken off and placed in a folder with a copy of what the entry looked like before the clipping was removed. If the clipping was not covering a diary entry it stayed in the diary. There is also evidence of other clippings that had been taped on the pages, but have since fallen out and were not with the diaries. Twelve photographs and Rena's marriage certificate are also included.

All of the diaries are written in cursive. Most are legible, but there are a few written in fading pencil or ink that are a little hard to read. In addition, some of Celia's diaries had water damage and wording is blurred in the 1940 and 1941 diaries. Outdated language does appear in a few diaries, especially in the earlier ones. The terms "colored", "Jew", and "Jap" describe acquaintances or people in WWII. Lastly, there are a few instances of jargon in the diary entries. Celia uses the word "bum", similar to bummer or not very good. She also abbreviates the social group, Philathea, as "Phil. class." Rena uses the term "over home" when she goes to the house she grew up in to eat or visit. She also calls her parents Mama and Papa, while her in-laws are Mother and Father.