The Raymond J. Thompson World War I Collection is a small collection of textual and visual materials that primarily pertain to the World War I service of Raymond J. Thompson, a private in the 314th Butchery Company, Quartermaster Corps of the American Expeditionary Forces. The collection also includes a number of personal materials. The collection has been divided into two series: World War I service and Personal materials. Each series is in chronological order. Most materials are dated from 1918 to 1941.

The first series, World War I service, includes 22 photographs and photographic postcards. Most of the images depict wartime scenes, including battlefields, trenches, machine gun nests, and military personnel. One image depicts Private Raymond J. Thompson in his military uniform. The postcards have basic captions on front, such as "Paris," "after bombardment," and "German dud." None of the photographic material is dated, but is likely circa 1918-1919. There are also a small number of military documents issued from 1918 to 1919, including special orders and permission to travel passes.

The second series, Personal materials, is quite small and includes both textual and visual materials. The textual materials mostly relate to Thompson's burial: a 1941 letter to "Mrs. A.M. Cinnamon" from Welti Funeral Service that discusses the funeral service and includes a map of the cemetery, a cemetery regulations and headstone order form, and a color snapshot taken in 1970 that depicts Thompson's headstone. A 1940 enrollment form for the Civilian Conservation Corps is also present.

Eleven photographs are also included in this series, nine of which were in an album which has been disassembled for preservation reasons. The album cover is leather and embossed with "Deadwood S.D." The black-and-white prints are mostly 2x3-inches and attached to black paper. The images depict scenic views, including a street, hillsides, and a house. One image depicts antelope and has a caption on the front, "Antelope at Wind Cave National Park, Hot Springs, South Dakota / Stevens Photo". There are also two loose photographs, one of which depicts buffalo at Wind Cave National Park. The other print depicts the Y.M.C.A. in Grand Island, Nebraska.