Series 1, Subseries 1: Bylaws and Minutes, 1941-1994, contains two distinct sets of minutes: the Board of Trustees meetings and the Executive Committee meetings. In accordance with the bylaws, the board was to meet at least once every three months exclusive of July and August. From 1970 on, this requirement was met or exceeded. However, prior to1970 meetings seem to have occurred once in the winter, usually in February, and once in the fall, usually in October. Where extant, notices and agendas are included with the minutes. The content of the minutes can be broken down into two parts. One part concerns the everyday administrative operations of Freedom House such as nominating new board members, discussing fund raising, reviewing committee work, deciding who would receive the Freedom Award, as well as the mundane tasks of managing the upkeep of the Willkie Memorial Building. The other material in the minutes concerns policy matters. Recorded here are board member discussions related to current events, such as the nuclear test ban treaty, the war in Vietnam, and, in general, dialogue regarding American foreign policy.

Series 1, Subseries 2: Meeting Materials, 1941-1992 supplements the minutes of the Board of Trustees and Executive Committee by providing detailed information on matters discussed at these meetings. Meeting Materials for the early years focus on establishing the organization with an emphasis on enlisting the proper individuals for the Board of Trustees, finding financial support, and establishing operations in the Willkie Memorial Building. Information was sent to each board member prior to meetings and could include clippings, memoranda, committee reports, open letters to government agencies, policy statements, notification of conferences, and activity reports. Researchers should note that the folders for 1979-1981 contain comprehensive descriptions of Freedom House projects called Activities Reports that list all the activities of Freedom House in those years and describe in detail the wide variety of interests of the organization.

Series 1, Subseries 3: Correspondence, 1941-1993, contains the correspondence of individual board members followed by the various committees of the board. It includes correspondence, speeches, articles, memoranda, reports and biographical information on each board member. The board member correspondence highlights the relationship between the individual members and the administration of the organization. The board consisted of such notables as William Agar, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Clifford Case, Leo Cherne, Paul Douglas, Roscoe Drummond, Harry Gideonse, Sidney Hook, Jacob Javits, Max Kampelman, Jeane Kirkpatrick, Bette Bao Lord, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, John Richardson, Bayard Rustin, Margaret Chase Smith, Rex Stout, Herbert Bayard Swope, Dorothy Thompson, Walter White, Roy Wilkins, and Wendell Willkie.

Series 1, Subseries 4: Policy Statements, 1942-1993, includes some statements that were sporadically released to major newspapers, while others were made available only through sale by Freedom House. Policy statements can also be found among the various board minutes, meeting materials, pamphlets and in the Freedom House Newsletter. The files consist of correspondence, drafts, and memoranda on a wide variety of issues including Vietnam, Nixon and his Presidency, affirmative action, and South Africa, as well as other domestic and foreign policy issues. In issuing these statements, Freedom House hoped to provide a broad context for examining important policy issues, thus highlighting the correlation between policy and the United States' domestic, social and political ethos. The policy statements aroused support and opposition from both ends of the political spectrum.