This collection contains the records of the Mao Zedong Writing Project, which operated from the 1970s to 1992 to comprehensively translate the writings of Chinese leader Mao Zedong (1893-1976) into English. Materials include translations, at various stages of completion, of thousands of documents, including essays, speeches, letters, conversations, poems, and official communications, along with photocopies of the original Chinese texts and supporting documentation. Translations for all items through 1959 are nearly complete, and rough translations of the major documents are available in chronological files through 1976 (Boxes 1-20).

Also included are unsorted project records and bibliographic files (Boxes 21-28, 34-35). These boxes contain various manuscript drafts, computer printouts, notes and edits, some clippings and photocopies. Among these files, Box 25 contains organized files primarily with photocopies of published Chinese works and Box 35 includes files proposals, financial information, and correspondence related to National Endowment for the Humanities funding.

There are four boxes of index cards (Boxes 31-33, 36) that record various information including bibliographic entries, reduced-size photocopies, entry notes, and, in Box 36, an alphabetical subject file containing core information on subjects referred to by Mao.

Boxes 29 and 30 contain bound photocopies of published works chiefly in Chinese from the Center for Chinese Research Materials (Oakton, VA) including published Chinese Writings of Mao-Tse-tung. Box 30 also holds bound copies of works from the Center for Chinese Studies (Berkeley, CA), including: Studies in Chinese Communist Terminology (Nos. 10, 12), A Glossary of Chinese Communist Terms and Phrases (1969), Chinese and Foreign Personalities who Attended National Day Celebrations in China: Reference Aid (October 1, 1969), a draft of the Dictionary of North China Colloquialisms by David E. Collier (1975); and Post Liberation Works of Mao Zedong: A Bibliography and Index (1976) compiled by John Bryan Starr and Nancy Anne Dyer.

There are also 9 Chairman Mao pin badges as well as 19 small red books containing selected works and quotations of Mao Zedong in various languages (1966-1972) in Box 38.