The “Publishers’ Advertisement” at the beginning of the book says that the work was published “under the superintendence” of the Historical Society of Cincinnati, and “contains a full account of all that took place in Washington county, where the first settlement in the present state of Ohio took place, from 1788 to 1803, or during the existence of the Territorial Government.” The author, in his Preface, wrote that he had lived in Ohio more than 40 years and was personally acquainted with a large number of the early pioneers. He drew on the diaries of Joseph Buell and John Mathews (mentioned in the title) for events on the Ohio river before the settlement of the Ohio Company, and a large portion of this history was founded on the notes of Judge Barker.