The Francis X. (Frank) Sutton papers primarily consist of material related to Sutton's time at the Ford Foundation, spanning his tenure as Assistant to the Vice President, Deputy Vice President, and his work writing the history of the Ford Foundation as a consultant. This collection documents Sutton's involvement beyond the Ford Foundation as well; it contains a substantial amount of information on the Aga Khan University in Pakistan, the Rockefeller Foundation and Bellagio Conference, and the Social Science Research Council (SSRC). Additionally, there is a small amount of material on the American Foundation for Intellectual Cooperation with Europe (AFICE) which documents its foundation and eventually, its termination. Personal files can be found at the end of the collection (Series 6) which consist of family correspondence, awards, publications, datebooks, and notebooks – most of which document Sutton's cross-organization involvement, travels, and projects.

The collection contains publications originally held in the Ford Foundation's library and archives. The subject matter of the materials reflects the work of the Foundation, the Fund for Adult Education, and the Fund for the Advancement of Education.

The collection contains grant approval letters, correspondence, financial information, reports, and clippings related to Ford Foundation grants from 1936-1977.

The collection contains the personal and professional files of Marcia T. Thompson, longtime promoter of financial stabilization projects in the arts. The collection includes reports and correspondence related to the Trude Lash Fellowship Program, reports and correspondence from Thompson's time at the Ford Foundation, and financial reports, correspondence, and long-term planning materials from the National Arts Stabilization Fund (NASF). There are many files related to the School of American Ballet, the New York City Ballet, and arts stabilization projects in major cities across the United States.

Ford Foundation records, Publications (Non-Grant Related), Accession 2017:050 consists of pamphlets, reprints, brochures, reports, conference papers, and other publications by the Ford Foundation or by authors involved in Ford Foundation projects.

The collection contains the formative documents of the Ford Foundation's program in Economic Development and Administration, including the meeting materials and correspondence of the initial advisory group. The collection also holds memos, reports, grant proposals, fellowship files, and budget information pertaining to initiatives to improve education and research in the fields of business and economics. The collection spans from 1950-1967.

Ford Foundation records, Multimedia Material, Accession 2017:067 contains photographs, negatives, slides, and films related to Ford Foundation press materials, publications, and projects, including the 1991 and 1992 Annual Reports, international women's programs in the 1980s, and activities of the Fund for Adult Education.

The collection consists of correspondence, reports, and grant documents from the Ford Foundation's work in India between 1952 and 1971. The files relate to the Ford Foundation's travel logistics in India (primarily connected with the Ford Foundation's private aircraft), Ford Foundation films "The Stranger" and "Gaon Sathis," agriculture programs, education programs, social science research, and community development programs.

Collection contains the staff subject files of Ruth D. Carter, an Assistant Administrative Officer in the Ford Foundation's European and International Affairs Program (EIA). The EIA was situated within the Foundation's International Division. During the time that Carter worked there, it was headed by Craufurd Goodwin and then, starting in 1977, by Francis Sutton. Carter's records are comprised of chronological files that chiefly originate from between 1968 and 1980.

This collection holds the papers of Peter F. Geithner who served as Regional Director of Asia Programs for the Ford Foundation between 1990 and 1996. It contains both professional and personal material, and although it chiefly consists of records created during the course of Geithner's long career in philanthropy, it was maintained by Geithner as an individual person and stored at his home in Orleans, Massachusetts. See the Other Finding Aids note to locate Ford Foundation records created by Geithner during his time as Regional Director of Asia Programs.