The volume provides an account of the Philadelphia Yellow Fever epidemic in 1793, and is largely religious in nature. Entries describe the illness, as well as the death and burial of many members of Cresson’s community. The volume includes a note signed by Mary Cresson, Cresson's wife, which she addressed to their children, so that they would understand the circumstances of their father's death.

The commonplace book of the Morris family includes copied extracts from the journals of Margaret Morris, which include a description of Yellow Fever in Philadelphia in 1793, as well as copied poems, letters written by Mary Morris and Richard Hill Morris, and a clipped illustration depicting early settlers.