The Harold Rubin Papers consist for the most part of files Rubin kept as a neighborhood activist interested in historic preservation and neighborhood renewal in Albany, New York between 1964 and 2002. To a lesser degree they document Rubin's legal struggles with the administration of New York State Governor Hugh Carey over Carey's 1978 attempt to force New York State civil servants to disclose outside sources of income, and his interest in Governor Mario M. Cuomo's attempt to withhold salary increases for civil servants.

Rubin chaired the Council of Albany Neighborhood Associations (CANA) from May 1976 to May 1996. CANA is the coordinating body for Albany neighborhood associations. Rubin has also been involved with the Neighborhood Resources Center, the Center Square Association (his neighborhood), and the Capitol Hill Architectural Review Commission. His files on these organizations contained correspondence, minutes, news clippings on the organizations and issues they were interested in, organizational newsletters, and reports. His files also contain extensive correspondence with other Albany neighborhood organizations such as Hudson/Park Neighborhood Association and Pine Hills Neighborhood Association. The files included correspondence with Albany organizations interested in urban renewal and historic preservation including the Capitol Hill Improvement Corporation, the Capitol Housing Rehabilitation Corporation, the Historic Albany Foundation, Historic Resources Commission (1988), Historic Sites Commission, Albany Industrial Development Agency, Mayor Corning Memorial Committee (1984), and St. Joseph Housing Corporation (1983).

Rubin's files also contain correspondence with New York City and New York State organizations interested in historic preservation including the Brownstone Revival Committee, New York State Council on Architecture, and Preservation League of New York State; and national correspondence with and information on the Alliance for Neighborhood Government and Neighborhood Preservation. There is also a small general Clippings/Miscellaneous File on Albany issues of concern to Rubin.

The files are organized into four series: Albany Community Subject Files, 1964-1989; a State Employment Subject File, 1975-1977; a Neighborhood Associations File which contains sub-series on the following organizations: Council of Albany Neighborhood Associations (CANA), 1975-2002, Neighborhood Resource Center, 1975-1990, Center Square Association, 1972-1979, Capitol Hill Architectural Review Commission, 1971-1988, Coalition for Effective Code Enforcement, 1974-1977; and a general Clippings/Miscellaneous File, 1972-1980. An inventory of the 2004 accession is also included in the relevant series, but that material has not as of yet been fully arranged and described.