This collection is divided into three main categories. The first contains Charles Batten’s written work, which includes numerous articles relating to conservation and forestry. This section contains reports from his schooling at Idaho State University and forestry research from his employment with Potlatch Forest, Inc. and the Chicago and North Western Railway System. Much of Batten’s written work is organized topically. Additional items in this section include a run of his Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph column, “Battin’ Around,” as well as Batten’s autobiography.

The second section, called “Charles and Barbara Batten’s Correspondence and Personal Files,” contains letters to and from numerous relatives and family friends. Most of this material consists of letters from Charles and Barbara Batten’s children: Andrea Stalker (who later divorced and remarried Lemuel Oehrtman), Al Batten, and David Batten. There are also many letters from Judy Watkins-Bentley, Bobby’s sister. This section also contains Barbara Batten’s correspondence with pen pals from all over the world, her scrapbooks and yearbooks, and Charles’ journals dating from 1978 to 1988.

Charles Batten was an avid learner and researcher and this is evident in the contents of this collection. The final section contains research materials and books about topics in which Charles was interested and researched. As in the first section of this collection, these materials are loosely grouped into categories such as Forestry, Conservation, History, Politics, and others.