Series III is composed of Anna Eliza "Widie" Barnard's correspondence and financial records dating from 1880 to 1912. The bulk of the materials date from 1880 through 1884. These dates correspond to the years she acted as the head of her household: during her husband John G. Barnard's last illness, and after his death on May 14, 1882. Her earlier correspondence and financial records are located in Series II.
Topics of correspondence in Series III include John G. Barnard's illness, which seems to have had physical and mental components; the education of John G. and Widie's children, John H., Jennie, and Nannie; the travels of Barnard family members and friends; and the welfare of Christ Church in Sheffield, Massachusetts, of which the Barnard family were members. A small amount of correspondence dating from 1884 to roughly 1888 deals with the Porter family dispute, including a draft of an 1887 letter by Anna E. Barnard to the editor of the New York Times. Frequent correspondents include Charlotte Ramsay Hall, Jane Brand Barnard, Anna McHenry Barnard, Augustus Porter Barnard, John Hall Barnard, Sydney Carr Cary, Sophia McHenry Brand, Jane Margaret Carr Cary, Anna Ledoux, H. Castegrier, Mary E. Dewey, William W. R. Hall, and Jane Augusta Porter.
Financial records in Series III document management of the Barnard family's financial and real estate assets and the distribution of John G. Barnard's estate. Records of family members' day-to-day expenses, especially those incurred during Anna E. Barnard's 1882-1883 travels in Europe, are included. The series also includes records related to the Sheffield Cemetery Association, of which Anna E. Barnard was a founding member. Correspondence related to financial management is grouped alongside other financial records in Series III.