The Lillian Moore Scales papers date from 1938 to 1991 [bulk 1938-1958] and measure 2.5 linear inches. The papers do not include much personal biographical information but provide several resources for researching the Des Moines African-American culture from the 1930s through the 1950s.

The Lillian Moore Scales papers include: the Negro Business and Information Directory, which lists the Negro-owned businesses in Des Moines, July 1939 to June 1940; the front cover of the Kappa Alpha PSI Journal dated May 1949, which features the Harper family of Iowa and lists national and regional officers and contacts; the "Program Emphases for 1938" of the Blue Triangle Branch, the African-American branch of the YWCA; a signed program for a concert by African-American pianist Philippa Duke Schuyler, including a personal thank you to Lillian Scales; several newspaper clippings that refer to the activities of the Des Moines City Federation of Colored Women, the Des Moines Branch of the NAACP, the Beta Gamma Chapter of the Alpha Kappa Sorority, and Scales's cousin Arlene Roberts Morris; a homemade program for a "friendly" football game between the Livingston Heights Bulldogs and the Iowa Panty-Waists; a thank-you note from friends for an Iowa football-oriented weekend during which Iowa cinched an appearance in the 1957 Rose Bowl; and an invitation to attend a Silhouette Club function.

The photographs in this collection are undated and most of them lack identification. A few of the photographs include first names only and several are simply titled "Booklovers" (a YWCA club). Of special interest are a photograph depicting an evening at the Sepia Supper Club in Des Moines, an official WAC photograph of two unidentified women, an autographed photograph of the concert pianist Philippa Duke Schuyler, and two photographs of African-American journalist Marie Ross.