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The records of the Board of Visitors of the College of William and Mary includes meeting minutes, financial reports, photographs, agendas, matriculation books, correspondence, material from Board of Visitors Rectors Oscar L. Shewmake and Roy Harvey Chappell, Jr., publications, and audio recordings of meetings from 1961-1999.

The collection of James Gleason represents all aspects of events and activities at the College of William and Mary for the years 1983-2006. Events documented include: Charter Day, commencement, buildings, awards, faculty and staff, students, and athletics. Physically the collection is organized by the "rolls of film taken" and into years they were taken. They are stored and protected in plastic sheets in notebooks and numbered for identification.

The collection includes a letter, fragments, and a printed law defense pertaining to a legal case involving Stewart.

Two letters written by George Frederick Holmes to Rector of the Board of Visitors at William & Mary, Robert McCandlish. Both are dated August 14, 1848.

March 26, 1728 letter from James Hughes to the Governors of William & Mary. Hughes states that he understands by way of advertisement displayed at the Capitol by James Blair that a chapel is to be erected at the College. He states he can do the work for "898 pounds current money," except for the "sashes and glasses in the body of the building."

On July 6, 1825, William & Mary law professor, James Semple, submitted his views on how to promote the good of the College to Board of Visitors member and alumnus John Tyler. He's responding to what appears to be a call by the Board of Visitors to the faculty to offer suggestions for how to improve the state of the school and bring it back to its "former standing." His views are submitted in draft form and include strikeouts and changes he made. He suggests ending the term in early June, rather than the 4th of July. He also suggests reducing student tuition to make it more affordable to attend. He writes, "expenses of the students should be reduced so low as to enable parents of moderate fortunes to send their sons to College." He then goes into detail as to how the College can cut student expenses. Additional suggestions include, but are not limited to, establishing a Grammar School, repeal the resolution which authorizes and requires W&M's president to oversee the conduct of professors, and allowing faculty to determine if students can stay or have to leave due to behavior.

Letter from John Tyler to Virginia Governor Henry A. Wise dated July 4, 1855. The letter states that Wise's being elected Governor would not be inconsistent with his remaining on William & Mary's Board of Visitors, and that other members of the Board hope Wise will not resign.

This collection is stored off-site. A minimum 72 hours advanced notice if required for retrieval.

This collection includes material related to the resignation of President Gene R. Nichol of the College of William and Mary on February 12, 2008, and the response of the campus, alumni, and public. Material in the collection was created by a variety of formal and informal organizations and individuals and includes correspondence, fliers, videos, images, websites, news clippings, armbands, stickers, and a variety of other formats. Much of the collection is material produced in response to President Nichol announcing his resignation with a smaller amount of material from the months preceding the announcement. The collection includes material from individuals and organizations who were opposed to President Nichol as well as those who supported him. This collection does not include official College of William and Mary records produced by various offices. Those records will generally be housed with the collections for the creating office or department. Exceptions include communications from the Board of Visitors to the campus community.

The Jan. 9, 1861 letter was written to his father, Henry. Wise mentions the organization of students into a military company under "Old Buck" (President Benjamin S. Ewell) and describes both the uniform and the arms. He also mentions that mail delivery service between Williamsburg and Norfolk has been changed.