The Chinese Diary Collection contains 850 volumes of hardbound and softbound diaries, dating from 1930s to 1980s. Some volumes are filled with writing from cover to cover; some, partially filled; and some, with brief inscriptions. It includes 81 volumes by different individuals of Republican Period (1912-1949) and 95 small volumes penned by an engineer, with scientific data and personal contents. The contents recorded in the dairies are significant, for instance, a set of 20 work diaries by a mid-rank public security cadre member during and after the Cultural Revolution offers detailed history of public security operations for two decades. A set of 10 work diaries by an officer working in a ministry of the State Council in the 1980s documented the political and daily lives before and after the Tiananmen Massacre in association with the students' pro-democracy movement.

The Li Huang papers (李璜檔案) contain manuscripts of his political writings dating from 1929 to 1971, as well as reference materials for his memoir. The reference materials include collected books, periodicals, reports, letters, photographs, and news clippings. The collection mainly reflects Li Huang's political thoughts and his opposition to communism.

The Shih-hui Hsiung (Shihui Xiong) papers consist of materials documenting Hsiung's life and political career from 1907 to 1974. The highlights of the papers are the manuscripts, which include six volumes of Hsiung's memoir, seven volumes of diaries over 43 years, and approximately 440 original handwritten speech scripts. The photographs and political and military affairs related documents focus on Hsiung's active involvement in the northeast region and abroad from 1930 to 1948. The papers overall consist of correspondence, calligraphy scrolls, diaries, a diploma, documents, letter books, manuscripts of published and unpublished works, maps, newspaper clippings, notes, oversize military notices, poems, photographs, photograph albums, reports, and other materials.

The V. K. Wellington Koo papers document the diplomatic legacy of Wellington Koo as a Chinese statesman and diplomat of the 20th Century. The papers primarily consist of materials collected during Koo's diplomatic career, relating to the Lytton Commission, 1932-1933; the League of Nations, 1931-1940; the United Nations, 1944-1946; his ambassadorships to France, 1932-1941; to Britain, 1941-1946; to the United States, 1946-1956; as the Senior Advisor to the Republic of China from 1956; and as the Judge on the International Court of Justice, 1957-1966. The materials include correspondence, diaries, memoranda, manuscripts, documents, notes, speeches, maps, photographs, printed material, and audio visual material. The bulk of the materials emphasizes China's domestic and foreign affairs, such as the Sino-Japanese conflict, World War II and the Cold War in the Far East region, as well as the League of Nations and the United Nations.

The Zhang Fakui papers emphasize General Zhang's military career as a Chinese Nationalist General during the important years of the Sino-Japanese War. The bulk of the papers consist of documents and maps relating to the history of the Fourth War Zone which he commanded during the Sino-Japanese War dating from 1940 to 1947. Also included are documents related to the governance and development of the Hainan dating from 1939 to 1949. Materials include correspondence, documents, maps, photographs, reports, manuscripts, and diaries.