The Archives of the Puerto Rican Diaspora, known as Centro Archives, collect, preserve and make available for research unique primary materials that document the history and culture of the Puerto Rican Diaspora with a concentration on New York City. The holdings include personal papers, records of organizations and institutions, photographic collections, broadsides, programs and ephemera. Among the collections are the records of civil rights organizations, the papers of activists, writers, artists, scholars, educators and elected officials. A highlight of the holdings is the extensive Records of the Office of the Government of Puerto Rico in the United States (OGPRUS).

Special features of the Archives include its photographic holdings documenting Puerto Rican life in the U.S. throughout the twentieth century; art prints/posters by artists from New York and Puerto Rico; sound recordings of Puerto Rican popular music. Databases for these collections are available at Centro Library and Archives.