The John Suiter photograph collection consists of 1,863 35mm negatives, prints, and supporting documentation used in the creation of "Rumors of Kerouac," Poets on the Peaks," and Gary Snyder: A Life (a work-in-progress). Subject matter includes: the Cascade Mountain peaks of Desolation, Sourdough, Sauk, and their fire lookouts; portraits of poets Gary Snyder, Phillip Whalen, Allen Ginsberg, Michael McClure, Phillip Lamantia, Nanao Sakaki, and others; images of Lowell, Massachusetts, hometown of Jack Kerouac; images from Suiter's Mexico trips of 1994 and 1995; images of Kitkitdizze, the home of Gary Snyder; portraits of various interview subjects and locations for the Gary Snyder project, including photographs from Suiter's Japanese research trips in 2004 and 2006. Also in the collection are the original book layouts for Poets on the Peaks, and fliers and programs from Lowell, Massachusetts for various Kerouac Commemorative events from 1981-2007. Unless otherwise stated, all prints and negatives are in color. Box 3 folder 10 houses the original inventory created by John Suiter which, for a few images, contains additional information.

Images in this collection are a reflection of the Western states and their mountains. The Cascades Mountains contributed significantly to the creative inspirations of the three poets showcased in Poets on the Peaks. The images of Kerouac’s Lowell are equally significant because they reveal the environment in which Jack Kerouac, one of the subjects of the book, was born and raised, revealing visually the influences that pushed Kerouac to the Western mountains in his early adult years.