This collection is composed of the papers of H. Merle Cochran, primarily including records from his work for three agencies: the U. S. Department of State (1927-1954), the International Monetary Fund (1954-1962), and the Organization for the Economic Co-operation and Development (1962-1969).

Foreign Service Files contain material primarily pertaining to Cochran's role as a U.S. State Department Consular and Financial Secretary in Europe from 1927-1941, where he was assigned to report on international finance and banking. These activities are documented through Cochran's dispatches to the U.S. Department of State, correspondence, and reports (both his own and those compiled from various financial agencies). Travel files include meeting agendas, travel details, conference notes, and trip-related correspondence.

Most series contain some non-English language documents, particularly the Foreign Service Files, which contain materials in French, Swiss, and German, among other languages.

H. Merle Cochran's later administrative positions as Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and Chairman of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (O.E.C.D.) Consortium for Greece are documented extensively through correspondence, diaries, and chronological files comprised of mixed materials: primarily speeches, memoranda, minutes, correspondence, and notes.