The Mendenhall Files include nearly 39 linear feet (92.5 document boxes) of material dating from 1958-1975. Some material has been restricted according the College Archives policies. The open records include incoming and outgoing correspondence, reports and working papers, news clippings and photographs. For more specific information about the contents of the collection see the series descriptions and folder listing below.

Additional material in the Smith College Archives may be found in the records of other departments and offices of the college, as well as in the personal papers of Thomas Corwin Mendenhall. The papers of Dorothy Reed Mendenhall may also prove useful. They are housed in the Sophia Smith Collection.

This collection is organized into eighteen series:

• I. Biography
• II. Academic Departments
• III. Academic Programs
• IV. Administrative Issues
• V. Administrative Offices
• VI. Alumnae
• VII. Buildings and Grounds
• VIII. Colleges and Universities
• IX. Committees & Boards
• X. Engagements
• XI. Events
• XII. Faculty and Staff
• XIII. Graduate Work
• XIV. Intercollegiate Associations
• XV. Non-Smith Organizations
• XVI. Speeches
• XVII. Students
• XVIII. Photographs