The records of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America date from 1918 to the present and document the work of PPFA and its predecessor organizations, national and international, in the areas of advocacy, medical research, legislative reform, public relations, as well as the work of individual administrators, staff, and affiliated organizations. The collection is a significant source of information on all aspects of the history of birth control and family planning, including women's health issues; sex education; women in poverty; international population planning and policy; and the legal, political and social aspects of contraception and abortion. Types of material include correspondence; memoranda; minutes; reports; financial records; legal records; publicity; publications; photographs; audio tapes; video tapes; and posters.

The records are divided into two portions, PPFA I and PPFA II, this being section I. PPFA I consists of the earlier records of the Federation (1918-74), and is completely organized and open to research. PPFA II consists of records received since 1988, dating from the 1920s to the present, so there is some overlap in the dates. The PPFA II Records are unprocessed, but restricted materials (see information on use) have been segregated from those that are open to research. The container list for PPFA II is not online, but a print version is available in the Sophia Smith Collection.

This collection is organized into seven series:

• I. American Birth Control League
• II. Birth Control Federation of America
• III. Planned Parenthood Federation of America
• IV. Planned Parenthood - World Population
• V. Related Organizations
• VI. Correspondence
• VII. Subject Files
• Oversize Materials