The box contains correspondences and documents, mostly concerning Lieutenant-Commander Nicholl's publications. The focus of these, and Nicholls work more generally, is safety apparatus used at sea. They include letters from Nicholls himself concerning his attempts to acquire images for his works from the relevant authorities, as well as the pictures in some cases; academic cuttings either reviewing Nicholl's publications, listing them and the conferences at which he spoke, or else requesting them for particular libraries. There are also documents from readers of his work, either individuals with an especial interest in the subject -suggesting improvements - or else from companies interested in acquiring some of the devices described within the book itself. In addition to these, there is also included a final draft of Nicholl's magnum opus "Survival at Sea", though the manuscript uses "Shipwreck and Survival" as its working title.

Administrative / biographical background
A number of Nicholl's works have been digitised by the journal Navigation; the Imperial War Museum website also has information about Nicholl.