The Tharchin Collection consists primarily of correspondence, publications and drafts, photographs, daybooks and financial accounts, and autobiographical materials. The geographic coverage of the collection spans both sides of the Himalayas, in particular, the activities of intellectuals, officials, missionaries, and other historical figures in India, Sikkim, and Tibet.

This collection of records document the professional and personal life of Wm. Theodore de Bary (1919-2017), the renowned scholar, educator, and university administrator who studied and served over decades at Columbia University. Types of files in this collection range from administrative files, correspondences, manuscripts, references, photographs, and audio-visual materials. The available materials showcase the different roles that de Bary had held in researching and scholarship-building, teaching, and administering.