This collection contains photographs taken by Arthur E. Scott, a photojournalist and photo-historian for the U.S. Senate. It contains over 5,000 prints and negatives of United States politicians (mainly Senators), political events such as campaigns and inaugurations, and landmarks throughout the Washington, D.C. area, from the mid-1930s to the 1970s. There are also 27 scrapbooks compiled by Arthur E. Scott, primarily consisting of newspaper clippings of Scott's photographs. The collection also contains photographs from the 1910s and 1920s that were taken by other photographers. The collection contains prints and film negatives in various sizes, as well as glass plate negatives. Boxes 1 through 11, 29, 30, and 43 contain photographic prints; boxes 12 through 25 contain 4 x 5 inch negatives; boxes 26 and 27 contain 4 x 5 inch glass plate negatives; and boxes 31 through 42 contain slides, 35mm negatives, and negatives of various other sizes. The majority of the photographs are in black and white unless otherwise noted.

Series 1 contains photographs of people, including Senators, Representatives, Vice Presidents, Presidents, Supreme Court Justices, and other politicians. It also contains photographs of celebrities, politicians' families, and others. This series contains individual as well as group shots. This series includes photographs of many Republican Party Senators, including George D. Aiken, Gordon Allott, Clifford P. Case, Norris Cotton, Everett M. Dirksen, Robert J. Dole, Hiram Fong, Barry M. Goldwater, Roman L. Hruska, Mike Mansfield, Charles H. Percy, Hugh Scott, Margaret Chase Smith, John G. Tower, and many others. Presidents and Vice Presidents pictured include Calvin Coolidge, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John N. Garner, Herbert C. Hoover, Gerald R. Ford, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard M. Nixon. The series also includes photographs of astronauts John Glenn, Virgil "Gus" Grissom, and Alan B. Shepard.

Series 2 contains photographs of building interiors and exteriors, monuments, landmarks, and parks. The majority of the series consists of photographs of the Washington, D.C. area. This series includes photographs of Arlington National Cemetery, the U.S. Capitol Building, the U.S. Supreme Court Building, the Potomac River, the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial. It also includes aerial shots of Washington, D.C. and the Panama Canal Zone, Panama.

Series 3 contains photographs of events such as dinners, meetings, fundraisers, campaigns, conventions, and inaugurations. The events pictured in the series include the 1960 and 1964 Republican National Conventions; Richard M. Nixon campaign events in California and Hawaii (1960); and inaugurations and oaths of office for politicians such as Gerald R. Ford, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard M. Nixon, Nelson A. Rockefeller, and Warren G. Harding. It also contains photographs of natural disasters, such as floods, and photographs of politicians and celebrities receiving Buddy Poppies from the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Series 4 contains photographs of published newspapers, as well as photographs of art works. It also contains reference publications and correspondence which relate to the photographs in the collection. Photographs of published newspapers include New York Times and New York Herald articles on the Battle of Gettysburg and the deaths of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. The art works pictured included the George Gordon Meade Memorial, Samuel Gompers Memorial, and a monument to Casimir Pulaski. The series also includes "Virginia Political Greats", a report written by Scott in May 1976, as well as correspondence and captions regarding photographs taken by Scott.

Series 5 consists of scrapbooks compiled by Arthur Scott. These scrapbooks document events from 1918 through 1946. Most items contained within the scrapbooks are newspaper clippings, many of which depict photographs taken by Scott. The scrapbooks document events including the presidencies of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, as well as the run-up to World War II and homefront activities during the war years. The scrapbooks also contain press passes, expense reports, and schedules relating to Scott's photojournalism activities.

Series 6 consists of photographic supplies used by Scott. Photographic supplies include slide cases, as well as film canisters labeled "1952", "1964 GOP Convention San Francisco", "Gene Autry by Barry Goldwater", and "Stereo Photos South America Vacation 1966".