The collection consists of business records and correspondence pertaining to the Brotherhood and the Western Pacific Railway during the mid-twentieth century.

In December 1899, the Order of Railway Clerks was organized in Sedalia, Missouri. Initially the Order affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. The Order's first convention, however, severed this connection in 1901 and it was not resumed for many years. The name of the organization was changed to the Brotherhood of Railway Clerks in 1904, and two years later it became involved in its first strike against the Southern Pacific.

Copyright has not been assigned to the California State Railroad Museum. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Senior Curator. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the CSRM as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.