Much of this material deals with research on Bridges' book Pioneers of Brass, as well as his business activities of selling the books and making recordings on demand of early brass and band music from his large collection of such music. These activities continued throughout the rest of his life and are reflected in his correspondence. There are many instances where a request to purchase one of his books or a recording would prompt someone to mention that a relative had played in a band and an exchange of anecdotes and photos would ensue between Bridges and a potential source of further information about brass players and bands. Among the correspondents are: Arthur W. Lehmann, Harold Bachman, Paul W. Giles, Garry W. Pechin, Mrs. Joseph Huber (her first letter to Bridges), Joe Duroe, Ray H. Wise, Joseph Forstner, Rose F. Burke (concerning her father, Milo Burke) and Cliff Lillya (his earliest letter to Bridges found).