This collection contains prints of photographs from the National Anthropological Archives of the Smithsonian Institution of indigenous peoples from California. Photographs in the collection depict members of various tribes, tribal housing and artifacts, and the local environment. An index of the photos with captions is located at the end of the collection.

The tribes represented in the collection are: Cahuilla, Chumash, Cocopa, Digueno, Hupa, Karok, Klamath, Luiseno, Maidu, Modoc, Mojave, Paiute, Pomo, Tolowa, Washo, Wintun, Yahi, Yokuts, Yuma and Yurok.