The collection consists mostly of recordings of radio broadcast programming from Kansas City that specialized in the jazz genre.

The collection contains many unique items recorded in the Kansas City area, including political speeches, musical performances, religious services, and advertisements for businesses and organizations. The Kansas City Philharmonic Orchestra and the Kansas City Conservatory of Music are strongly represented with numerous recordings of each entity. Finally, the collection also holds some national radio programs, such as "The Guiding Light," "Hymns of All Churches," and "Michael Shayne."

The Eliot S. Berkley Collection was gifted to LaBudde Special Collections in December 2014 by his son, Eliot A. Berkley, and daughter, Emily D. Berkley. The collection holds a varied selection of historical documents, including handwritten journals, indentures, lithographs, publications, and maps.

The Ernest Berlin Collection is comprised of documents and memorabilia from Berlin’s time as a college student in Kansas City, Missouri. The collection contains posters from productions with The Tophatters’ club of the University of Kansas City as well as an unfinished manuscript for a play. Materials including campus newspapers, playbills, and personal correspondence offer a glimpse into the history of theater at Kansas City University from 1938-1942.

The Helen Xarhis-DePasco Collection was acquired from Shirley Gipson, niece of Mrs. DePasco. It contains letters and photographs related to World War II. There are other personal items, but the focus remains on the war and the daily lives of family members waiting in Kansas City. It should be noted that during the period of time the correspondence in this collection took place, Helen Xarhis was using the pseudonym Helen Grey, although the reason is unknown.

Recordings of Kansas City Real Estate Developer J.C. Nichols. They include "Dramatic Story of the Country Club District," "Fireside Show," Man of the Month dedication, a speech by J.C. Nichols, and others.

The Jerry Heaster Collection was a gift of Hope Heaster in March 2013. The collection contains business columns written by Heaster for the Kansas City Starfrom 1979 to 2005.

The Jim Swetnam collection was received by LaBudde Special Collections in March of 2017. The collection contains notebooks and notecards with photograph descriptions, film negatives and photos from Swetnam’s career as a commercial photographer, correspondence, and official Professional Photographers of America paperwork.

The collection consists of cassette tapes and CD’s of live concerts at Penn Valley Park, Crown Center, Line Creek Park and the Cowtown Ballroom in Kansas City. The dates of the concerts range from 1973-1979. There is also a copy of the 2009 documentary "Cowtown Ballroom… Sweet Jesus" which was produced and directed by Heyen in the collection.

Consists of audio recordings of John Gage, Mayor of Kansas City, including speeches, Gage recalling his past, and radio broadcasts of events and panel discussions with Gage and his administration.

The John Garrity Collection contains correspondences, legal and business documents, handwritten and typed music, promotional material, newspaper clippings, and photographs related to Garrity and his publishing company Wyandotte Music. Emphasis is on materials from the 1970s.

Collection also includes recordings from journalist, John Garrity, music from Kansas City and folk music from San Francisco in which Garrity was involved.

The collection was a gift from Karen Herman in June 2022. It consists of correspondence, organizational documents, photographs, publicity materials, research, and travel journals relating to the Women’s Foundation, the Hunger Project, and United WE. Of particular note are travel journals from trips to Bangladesh, India, Bangkok, Vietnam, and Cambodia containing drawings, observations, myths, and organizational plans.