The collection includes more than 100 letters to Benningsen from P.P. Ignatév, the last Minister of Imperial Russia, written in 1920-1921; and correspondence between Benningsen and his wife, Ekaterina Platonovna Benningsen, and Ksenii︠a︡ V. Denikina. Several manuscripts by E. P. Benningsen are also included: a long memoir which treats the history of the Benningsen family, his own government and Red Cross service, the 1917 Revolution and the Civil War, and emigration in France and Brazil. There are copies of his lectures and articles on historical topics; a lengthy essay on the character of modern politics called "Ce que la vie m'a enseigne"̀; and a number of reviews of books dealing with Russia. There are two sets of subject files: one containing materials relating to the activities of the "Soi︠u︡z Pazheĭ" (an emigre organization of former members of the Corps of Pages); the other, materials relating to the efforts by former officers of the Kavalergardskiĭ Regiment to recover a trove of silver objects belonging to them that they had deposited in the State Treasury at the beginning of World War I and which finally ended up in Belgrade. A brief biographical note on her husband by Ekaterina P. Benningsen and a few photographs complete the collection.

The collection primarily consists of unpublished manuscripts by Shavelśkiĭ. There are also letters from Shavelśkiĭ to his daughter (Marii︠a︡ Novit︠s︡kai︠a︡), several photographs of Shavelśkiĭ, clippings and miscellaneous printed items. Shavelśkiĭ's manuscripts include his memoirs (1920) which describe church affairs in Russia, World War I, the Imperial family and the 1917 Revolution; "Nabroski s natury" (1947), a series of brief essays and stories; "Pokhod protiv Rasputina" (n.d.); "Russkai︠a︡ t︠s︡erkov ́pred revoli︠u︡t︠s︡ieĭ" (1937); and "V dobrovolćheskoĭ armii" (1943), which describes Shavelśkiĭ's service as an army chaplain. Other manuscripts include brief sketches of Shavelśkiĭ by Feodor Bokach and N.N. Glubokovskiĭ.

The collection consists of manuscripts, clippings and books. The manuscripts include a biography of Sakharov and a bibliography of his works, both written by his wife. There is also an essay by Sakharov "Die Herrgottsbienen;" newspaper clippings and two books written by Sakharov"Die tschechischen Legionen in Sibirien" (Berlin, 1936) and "Der verratene Armee" (Berlin, 1938).