The Riobard O'Dwyer Papers contains genealogies, vital records, cemetery records, occupations, and notes. The genealogies include 155 composition notebooks organized by townland with compiled genealogies. The handwritten genealogical sketches for the families that lived in the townland focus on family groups: husband, wife, and their children. The data for each husband and wife includes the names of their parents, baptism date and place, marriage date, officiant, witnesses, death date, cause, and may include comments from oral history. Typical data for the children include birth date, baptism date, priest's and sponsor's names, and often include notes about occupation, emigration, marriage, or death.

The transcribed vital records include Adrigole Parish (baptisms, 1855-1996; marriages, 1831-1995; deaths, 1864-1979); Allihies Parish (baptisms 1820-2002, marriages 1823-2002, deaths 1864-1965); Castletown & Bere Island (baptisms, 1819-2002; marriages, 1817-2005; deaths, 1864-1986), Eyeries Parish (baptisms, 1843-1927; marriages, 1823-2007; deaths, 1864-2007); Glengarriff & Bonane (baptisms, 1830-1997; marriages, 1831-1997; deaths, 1864-1998), and Kilcatherine (baptisms, 1928-2007; deaths, 1965-1991).

The collection includes transcriptions from Church of Ireland records (baptisms, 1787-1903; deaths, 1807-1981). There are also Church of Ireland marriages for Berehaven (1805-1929), Parish of Glengarriff (1864-1955), and Parish Church Kilcaskin (Adrigole) (1847-1929).

The cemetery records are transcribed tombstone inscriptions from local cemeteries including Ballaghbue, Cahermore, Dromlave, Dursey Island, Fiachna, Kilcaskan, Kilcatherine, Rossmacowen, St. Finian, and St. Michael's Cemetery.

There are fifteen composition notebooks that contain data on occupations such as army, clergymen, coastguards, farmer, labourer, light keepers, miners, police officers, schoolmasters, and scripture readers taken from Church of Ireland records.

The notes section includes some historical material on the parishes and printed copies of Riobard’s posts to the Beara listserv on Rootsweb especially those concerning “Stories from Beara” and “Names and variants of the Beara Peninsula”. There are also photocopies of tithes lists and [Sir Richard Griffith’s] “Primary valuation of Tenements, County Cork, Part of the Barony of Beare, in the Union of Castletown”.