The collection consists of papers relating to the life and work of Oregon-born explorer, writer, photographer, and filmmaker Amos Burg. A significant portion of the collection consists of diaries, trip logs, notes, and correspondence that reflect Burg's travels; his work as an assignment and freelance writer, photographer, and filmmaker for the National Geographic Society, Encyclopaedia Britannica, and Erpi Classroom Films; and his later career at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. A significant amount of this material relates to Alaska. Other travels well-represented are Burg's voyages on rivers in the United States and Canada and his time at Cape Horn and Tierra del Fuego in South America.

The collection also holds Burg's research notes; drafts and published clippings of newspaper and magazine articles that he wrote; unpublished writings, including quotes, proverbs, and observations that Burg wrote down; notes and papers relating to speeches and lectures that he gave; scripts and other records relating to films he produced; published materials by others that are about Burg or mention him; and papers relating to a schooner he owned, the Endeavour. Other materials in the collection include scrapbook pages of clippings, publications, and ephemera relating to Burg; the papers of Burg's wife, Carolyn Burg; addresses; guest book entries; and published material that Burg collected.