The fonds consists of records related to British Columbia politician and judge Alexander Malcolm Manson's life. The records in this fonds encompass all aspects of Manson's life and were produced both through his career and in his personal life. Notably, the fonds contains extensive records from Manson's political career, his judicial career, and the investments and trusts he managed. Many areas of Manson's life overlapped considerably, including overlapping careers, and records related to one area of his life may be found among records related to another area.

The contents of this fonds consist predominantly of correspondence, including carbon copies of correspondence sent by Manson. This correspondence pertains both to Manson's career as well as to various parts of his personal life and has been arranged according to the file names used by Manson wherever possible; correspondence that has not otherwise been sorted by Manson has been sorted as "general correspondence," a designation which also includes personal correspondence. Other types of records in this fonds include meeting minutes, court proceedings, financial statements, newspaper clippings, governmental reports, shareholder reports, certificates, invitations and event programmes, and photographs.

The fonds has been arranged into eight series: legal career; political career; judicial career; finances; personal life; Ancient Free and Accepted Masons; general correspondence; and photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera.

The fonds consists of records generated in the course of research for the biographies of John Diefenbaker and Lester B. Pearson. Interviewees include Donald Cameron, Jack Davis, Grace MacInnis, Stuart Keate, Norman McKenzie and Harold Winch. Fonds includes recorded interviews and their transcripts and video tapes of an interview with Grace MacInnis.