The bulk of the materials in this collection consist of sermons, poems, songs, and catechisms, a church register, and other religious writings documenting Mennonite church and community life in Balk, Friesland (The Netherlands) during the first part of nineteenth century, 1786-1850. The papers also include sermons, poems, correspondence, and other miscellaneous records pertaining to Balk Mennonite life in New Paris, Indiana.

Most materials are in Dutch. Available English translations are noted in the detailed collection description.

The collection is organized into series, most of which are groups of documents associated with the Smid Family siblings and the wife of R. J. Smid. Series include:

(1) Background Articles and Information on Balk Mennonites, 1948-2006

(2) Early Materials, 1786, undated

(3) Obe Johannes Smid, 1815-1849

(4) Akke Johannes Smid, 1820-1828

(5) Jacobjen Johannes Smid, 1822-1836

(6) Ruurd Johannes Smid (R. J. Smith), 1822-1893

(7) Grietje Jacobs Symensma (Margaret J. Smid), 1845-1895