The "Gentleman's magazine" section is a digest of selections from the weekly press; the "(Trader's) monthly intelligencer" section consists of news (foreign and domestic), vital statistics, a register of the month's new publications, and a calendar of forthcoming trade fairs.

Volume One of this history of the Preen family covers the history from the earliest records. A DNA study has shown that most of the Preens alive today belong to one of three groups and each of these groups is the subject of one of the later volumes (Volume Two the Cardington Group, Volume Three the Kings Stanley Group and Volume Four the Bridgnorth Group). This volume describes all the entries which do not fit into one of the other volumes and includes the Prinn families in Shrewsbury and Kings Charlton, the Pruan family in Gloucestershire and the Prynnes in Cornwall and Devon.