The Women's Recreation Association (WRA) records date from 1920-1975 and measure 8.5 linear feet. These records consist primarily of newspaper clippings, annual files and sport club files, which document and describe the organization's wide variety of social, athletic, and administrative activities. The annual files include membership lists, handbooks, minutes, schedules and Play Day programs. The WRA records also include a large selection of Sport Guides, rules and regulations designed specifically for women's sports. The records are arranged in the following series: Administrative records, Annual files, Financial records, Handbooks from other schools, Newspaper clippings, Social activities, Sport clubs, Sport Guides, and Artifacts.

The Administrative records series (1923-1971) includes the WAA and WRA constitutions, membership lists, reports, schedules, Board of Director's duties, publicity, and other miscellaneous administrative records.

The Annual files series (1943-1973) provides documentation of the activities, officers, committee work and events offered each year. Sport and recreation activities are filed under the name of the sport club.

Included in the Financial records series (1942-1972) are budgets and receipts for the first women's intercollegiate athletic teams in the late 1960s. Account books and invoices complete this series.

The Handbooks from other schools series (1939-1971) is comprised of WAA and WRA handbooks from other colleges and universities around the country, primarily from the mid-1940s to the 1960s. Included, is one handbook from 1939 that details how to organize a girl's athletic association and how to become a member of the Iowa State High School Girls Athletic Association.

The Newspaper clippings series (1920-1954, 1968-1969) offers a record of the many activities and events sponsored by the WRA.

The Social activities series (1945-1960) consists of a select group of special events: University Carnival, Open House, Old Gold Days, Play Days and Sports Days. Most social activities are documented in the annual files.

The Sport clubs series (1933-1973) ranges from Archery to Volleyball and everything in between, including Crafts, Roller Skating and Tumbling. This series contains sport club records, which document the wide variety of sport and recreation activities available to university students. Club activities, intramurals and extramurals (intercollegiate competition) are all represented.

The Sport Guides series (1926-1975) consists primarily of sport guides from the "Official Sports Library for Girls and Women" published for the National Section for Girls' and Women's Sports (NSGWS). These books include rules, standards, training, coaching and officiating techniques designed specifically for females. The series is divided by sport and does contain a few guides that are not gender-specific.

The Artifacts series (1931-1969) consists of Women's Rifle Team patches a medal, a State Sportsday award, and a fencing membership pin.