Duke University Press publishes both scholarly books and journals, primarily in the humanities and social sciences. In its early years, preference was given to works published by faculty, graduate students and alumni and to works focused on southern states. The records of Duke University Press span from 1812-2019 and consist of correspondence, annual catalogs, advertisements, annual reports, Board minutes, contracts and agreements, book and journal reviews, financial records, marketing files, the records of former director Steve Cohn, and facsimiles of the Carlyle letters.

The records are arranged in the following series: Director's files, Editorial Advisory Board, Editorial files, Author files, Subject files, Financial records, Catalogs, the Association of American University Presses, the Carlyle Letters, Marketing Files, and Steve Cohn Papers. The collection consists of correspondence, annual catalogs, advertisements, Board minutes, annual reports, contracts and agreements, book and journal reviews, financial records, correspondence, art and publicity related to the marketing of publications, and facsimiles of the Carlyle letters. The material ranges in date from 1812-2021.

Much of the contents list for the Editorial Files, Marketing Files, Steve Cohn papers, and Executive Support shared email were provided by Duke Press and have not been arranged or described by the Duke University Archives.

The South Atlantic Quarterly was founded in 1901 at Trinity College (later Duke University), and faculty from Trinity College and Duke University have served on its editorial board since its inception. The periodical, published by Duke University Press since 1930, began as a scholarly and literary journal about southern topics, and has since expanded to discuss national and international issues. The South Atlantic Quarterly Records consist mainly of correspondence regarding manuscript submissions and editing issues. Other materials include Board of Directors minutes, subject files, and content lists for individual issues of South Atlantic Quarterly. English.

The South Atlantic Quarterly Records consist mainly of correspondence regarding manuscript submissions and editing issues. Other materials include Board of Directors minutes, subject files, and content lists for individual issues of South Atlantic Quarterly. The materials date from the mid-1920s to the mid-1980s. The collection is organized according to accession number, from earliest to latest.