The Hudson Family Papers relate primarily to physician, abolitionist, and social reformer Erasmus Darwin Hudson, Sr. His correspondence (1825-65) to and from family and friends includes commentary on anti-slavery and Civil War era events and personalities. Notable correspondents or individuals mentioned include abolitionist and women's rights advocate Abigail Kelley Foster, social reformers Parker Pillsbury and Wendell Phillips, and clergyman Theodore Parker. Other items of interest are E.D. Hudson Sr.'s address "Intemperance" (1828), a manuscript and typescript of his journal, "Anti-Slavery Campaign" (1842-43), and E.D. Hudson, Jr's 1864 address, "Conquest Through Self Conquest."