This series consists of general material about Alice Ireys' life and career, education, family, and homes. Included is the video documentary The Living Landscapes of Alice Recknagel Ireys (1999) and material about its creation. The series is arranged alphabetically. The extensive set of Cambridge School of Domestic and Landscape Architecture class notes offers many details of the training available to women at that important institution

This series consists of materials related to gardens designed by Alice Ireys. It includes correspondence with clients and contractors; information about clients; design sketches and plans; construction drawings and details; contracts and specifications; plant lists, and notes on phone calls, site visits, and meetings with clients. The first section of the list for the series, Client files, is as inclusive a list of client names as possible. It includes the names and addresses of all clients represented in this series. If there is only oversize material related to a particular client, the name is followed by a 'see' reference, directing the researcher to materials for that client in the subseries Client files-oversize boxes or the subseries Client files-flat files. The list also contains "see" and "see also" references for cases where clients may have changed surname due to subsequent marriages, or commissioned, or been involved in the commissioning of, public as well as private gardens: or where properties with Ireys-designed gardens were inherited or purchased by clients with different surnames.

The files are arranged in three sections according to the physical size of the material: Client files contains correspondence, lists, clippings, notes, and small drawings-all materials that fit into standard legal size folders; Client files-oversize boxes is primarily mid-sized drawings and sketches with a few miscellaneous larger items; Client files-flat files contains full size drawings, sketches, and landscape plans. Each section is arranged alphabetically by client name with some clients represented in two or in all three sections.

Users of the client files must sign a written agreement to keep all names and street addresses of private clients confidential until January 1, 2031. The folder list for the Client Files is not included in the online version of the finding aid. Researchers may contact the Sophia Smith Collection for a copy.

This series consists of tax information, personal and client account books, fee lists, check ledgers, and lists of fees.

Users of the financial files must sign a written agreement to keep all names and street addresses of private clients confidential until January 1, 2031.

This series consists of various materials reflecting a range of Ireys' professional activities unrelated to specific garden designs. Included are materials on garden consultations, daily activities, exhibitions, garden tours, judging at flower shows, bulb orders, and organizational affiliations. The weekly notes (1971-99) are brief notes on the major tasks of each day with a weekly summary attached. To reduce the overall bulk of the papers, complete sets of these notes were preserved at five year intervals and the rest were discarded. The notes give a sense of how Ireys' days were structured through the year and the way personal and professional matters were interwoven in the day.

This series consists primarily of professional photographs of gardens designed by Ireys. In some cases there are "before" photographs of garden sites taken by Ireys or her clients and some snapshots of the garden-in-progress taken by clients. There are also a few family photographs and some photographs of garden elements and gardens designed by others used for teaching and for illustrating written works. The materials are arranged in three sections by photographic format: prints, slides, and negatives. Within each section, photographs are arranged in groups as follows: Biographical, Client files, Subjects, Writings. Images of gardens designed by Alice Ireys are arranged by client name. Photographs used in teaching are arranged by subject. Photographs used as illustrations in Ireys' books are filed under the client name, if known. When the client name is unknown or the photograph is of a garden designed by someone other than Ireys, the photograph is filed under the title of the book.

Users of the photographs series must sign a written agreement to keep all names and street addresses of private clients confidential until January 1, 2031. Client names are not included in the online contents list for photographs. Researchers may contact the Sophia Smith Collection for a copy.

This series consists of professional correspondence not associated with specific garden designs. Included is correspondence with nurseries, contractors, suppliers and photographers. It is arranged alphabetically by subject of the correspondence.

This series consists of texts, correspondence, notes, publicity materials, and handouts prepared for speeches. The series includes only a few fell texts of speeches, as Ireys was much more likely to speak from outlines or notes. The materials are arranged chronologically. General and undated handouts, arranged by subject, are filed at the end of the series.

This series consists of correspondence, handouts, notes, outlines, publicity materials, testing materials, and some texts of lectures. The materials are arranged alphabetically by institution.

This series is divided into three subseries: Correspondence consists of general correspondence with various publications about potential writing projects; Articles consists of correspondence, and drafts and texts of articles filed alphabetically by title; Books consists of notes, outlines, drafts, publicity material, illustrations, and sales and royalty information related to Ireys' published and proposed books, filed chronologically. Photographs used in the books are located in Series V. PHOTOGRAPHS.