Horace Holden Thayer, Jr. (1878-1959) was a naval architect, mechinical engineer, and businessman. Between 1909 and 1914 Thayer worked for the Delaware Construction Company which was a building company, and a subsidary of the National Real Estate Trust Company, which provided loans and financing for the properties. This small collection consists of papers relating to Thayer's early work with the National Real Estate Trust Company and the Delaware Construction Co. These materials document the formation of the National Real Estate Trust Company and building specifications for the Delaware Construction Co. There is a small amount of papers related to the businesses of his father-in-law Thomas H. Savery (1837-1910), specifically the Harpers Ferry Paper Company and the Shanandeoah Pulp Company.

The Savery family of Chester County, Pennsylvania, produced two generations of eminent mechanical engineers. The Savery family papers consist primarily of those of Thomas H. Savery (1837-1910), his son William H. Savery (1865-1949), and William H. Savery's daughter Sara L. Savery (1897-1979) conerning the family papermaking machinery businesses, financial investments, and real estate activities documented through both personal and professional correspondence, business records, blueprints, and reports.