James A. Corbett (1933-2001) was a rancher, writer, philosopher, and humanitarian. Born in Wyoming, he was educated at Harvard in philosophy before settling in the Southwest where he was a rancher. In 1985 Corbett was one of eleven defendants in the Arizona Sanctuary Trial, and one of the three acquitted. After this trial, Corbett continued his work smuggling refugees, claiming that they set the schedule and he would continue to bring them across the border as long as they continued coming. Corbett argued that what he was doing was not civil disobedience, but civil initiative to help uphold asylum laws.

The Jim Corbett Collection documents Corbett's work spanning the early sixties to the mid-nineties, with the bulk of the collection taking place in the 1980s. The content covers personal letters to his wife to research material for the Sanctuary Movement, but a majority of the content are his writings from his books to essays and thoughts. Unpublished essays and an El Salvador License plate are also contained in this collection.