The papers of David Elkinton, environmentalist and author of . Materials include drafts, correspondence, financial records, court records, publications, meeting minutes, photographs, and audiovisual materials such as cassette tapes of interviews. These records include personal records of Elkinton, as well as some records of the Highlands Conservancy and it's leadership, such as president Larry George. This collection is divided into two series: Book and Research Materials, and Historical Materials.

Series 1, Book and Research Materials, includes papers relating to the research, writing, and publication process of his history of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy (sometimes abbreviated as WVHC). Book materials are related to the process of funding and publishing, as well as drafts and feedback during the writing process. In addition to the paper copies, there is also a floppy disk with a copy of his working draft (box 1, folder 9). Research materials include notes about sources, research trips, and contacts, as well as articles, correspondence, and several detailed topical indexes of the (Box 2, Folder 12), the WVHC's publication (also referred to as "the Voice").

Series 2, Historical Materials, contains the records, documents, publications, photographs, cassette tapes, and a disc collected by Elkinton during his research, as well as during his time with the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy. These records concern the group's activist and recreational activities, as well as administrative records such as meeting minutes, financial records, and correspondence. This includes records of the early years of the organization, beginning in 1966 (Box 3), the regular review workshops the organization hosted (Box 4), publications of the from the first edition as well as the early newsletter, original photographs collected for the , and tapes of the interviews Elkinton conducted. The materials for the 2005 review workshop also include a disc with audiovisual materials (box 4, folder 5). Copies of the 1969-1989 editions of the are available on microfilm and digitally upon request.

Highlights include complete drafts of his book (Box 1); legal records from the 1985-1986 cases against the Division of Water Resources and Canaan Village (Box 3 folders 8-9); a notebook containing a list of early members (Box 3, Folder 4); copies of the newsletter that preceded the (1968, box 5, folders 1-2); and interviews conducted by Elkinton (box 9) as well as the accompanying notes (Box 2, folder 2). See the box list for more details about contents.