The IU gift file indicates that this collection was received in 1964 from Mrs. Harvey Bordner. Since the acknowledgment address was "Mr. J. B. Howe Martin, 3139 Sharon Avenue, Indianapolis" the collection was probably given to IU after her death. The material received from the Bordner family has been augmented with some material from files already in the IU Archives.

The Harvey Bordner papers span 1901-1955 although the bulk of the material dates between 1902 and 1936. The collection relates primarily to Bordner's life and career in the Philippines and is organized into ten series: Correspondence; Articles and reports; Speeches; General Philippines information; Photographs; Clippings; Diary; Yearbooks; Certificates and awards; and Memorial materials.

The Correspondence series spans 1902-1938 and is further organized into two subseries, Personal, 1902-1918, and Professional, 1910-1938. Harvey Bordner's Personal correspondence includes letters to his brother and sister-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Tilon D. Bordner, parents, Mr. and Mrs. Tilon J. Bordner, and other family members which Harvey called "home folks," written during his time in the Philippines. The Professional correspondence includes letters written by both Harvey and Maude. There is quite a bit of correspondence with the Indiana University Alumni Office, mostly in regards to the Alumni newsletter. There are also letters between the Bordners and other School administrators in the Philippines. A few of the letters are correspondence with American politicians, such as Louis Ludlow and Frank Crone of Virginia. The letters that date after Harvey's death are by Maude and others concerning Harvey.

The Articles and reports series, 1902-1940, consists of Bordner's reports and published articles, most of which were written by Harvey while he was in the Philippines. There are reports on traveling through the Pacific, the Philippine Islands, the Philippine Normal School, and other education-related topics. There is also an article on the role of the church in daily life after the First World War and one on the meaning of the American Flag.

The Speeches series, 1902-1935, consists primarily of welcome and graduation addresses, most likely for the students of the Philippine Normal School. Other speeches include addresses to teachers and other school administrators. Topics featured are discipline, teaching techniques, and suggested courses of study for high schools.

The General Philippines information series spans 1904-1940 and is further organized into four subseries: Books, 1916-1927; Education, 1904-1913; Souvenirs, 1904-1909; and Travel and history, 1905-1940. The subseries are arranged chronologically. The series includes books on the Philippine Islands' history, geography, and culture; education publications; travel pamphlets; and American publications on the Philippines. The Education sub-series includes student artwork and a diary kept by a student as an English assignment. The Souvenirs sub-series includes post cards and a cruise ship dinner menu.

The Clippings series, 1901-1955, includes articles from Philippine and American newspapers. Articles are mostly about the Bordner's teaching influence in the Philippines.

The Diary dates to 1914-1915 and appears to have been written by Maude's father, P.B. Martin, as his name is written on the front of the volume. It details a trip taken from San Francisco with Maude. The weather during the voyage is described in great detail, as in the travel schedule, including arrival and departure times and the names of the ships taken on the journey. The rest of the diary is a day-to-day record of the visit to the Philippines. There is a small account of a visit to a Catholic Church that does not recognize the authority of the Pope. The scenery of the islands is a topic of interest in the diary. There are notes about packages arriving from America as well as visits with other Americans on the islands. In the back of the diary is a brief paragraph written by Maude that gives an account of her family history in Kentucky and Virginia. The loose papers tucked into the diary include lists of groceries and a sample of Asian language characters.

The Yearbooks series, 1916-1921, consists of books from two schools where the Bordners worked while in the Philippines. The "Souvenir" (1921) is the yearbook of the Manila High School and was produced during the time Harvey served as the Superintendent of the Manila City Schools. "The Torch" (1917-1919) is the yearbook of the Philippine Normal School where Harvey served as superintendent.

The Certificates and awards series, 1915-1929, is a set of three official documents given to Bordner from his various places of study and employment.

The Memorial materials, 1936, consist of Harvey's obituary and letters of consolation to Maude. Related to this series is a scrapbook called "Necrological Services Held in Memory of Harvey A. Bordner." The service was held at the Philippine Normal School. The book includes photographs of the service, newspaper clippings, a speech, and letters. It is housed with the photographs of this collection because of the large number of photographs in the scrapbook. But due to the nature of the book – a memorial service for Bordner – it should be described in the memorial materials.

The Photographs span 1902-1936 and are a very interesting group of about 400 mostly black & white prints taken in the Philippines. There are also some post cards and photos clipped from publications. These photos include images of the Bordners' home, family, schools in the Philippines, such as Manila High School and the Philippine Normal School, school groups, and scenery and sights around the Philippines (including a Russian ship damaged in the Russo Japanese war). One album contains manuscript testimonials written on the occasion of Bordner's retirement in 1936. There are also scrapbooks that include photos of Manila, Bordner family and friend photos, scenes from the Philippine Normal School, and other schools. Most of photos are pasted onto album pages. There is an inventory of the photos in the Archives processing file for this collection. The photos are stored with the archives photograph collection. Consult staff for details.