The Prints and Photographs Division at the Library of Congress holds many collections with images relating to U.S. Congressional members, staff and activities. As noted in the introduction, however, the collections include relatively few portraits of Congressmen who served before 1850 and generally do not include photographs from the current Congress. Congressional hearings are not systematically covered and are found in only a few collections. Congressmembers and issues considered by Congress are referenced, often with biting humor, in the cartoon collections.

The collections highlighted below are a great place to start when looking for pictorial materials relating to the U.S. Congress. They are listed in rough chronological order. With each collection name is the time span for which it is strongest.