Administrative series includes all materials related to the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Department of Social Work (SASW) and information about Fulbright in Germany, as well as student research kept by Pat.

Biographical series contains various biographical information, including photographs of Pat O'Brien and Donna Roper and copies of Pat's CV and obituary. Contents also include miscellaneous newspaper articles and correspondence that are not associated with a dedicated project or research area, award nominations, and society/commission materials. Other materials include a collection of conference booklets and abstracts from the American Indian Workshop, Flint Hills Conference, and Plains Anthropological Conference (1969-2002).

Box two contains administrative materials related to the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work (SASW) including course proposals (M.A. in Anthropology and Ph.D. in Sociology), archaeological field school proposals, department faculty information, department budgets, Board of Regents program reviews, NCA Accreditation, Provost's Excellence Committee, Latin American and Ethnic Studies information, a Museum Studies program proposal, and curriculum revision. Also included in this box is student research (kept separate from Pat's research) conducted by Frederick Scott and William Reeder (Ph.D. dissertation). Box 2 also contains information about Pat's Fulbright Teaching Fellowship in Germany and other German archaeology information.

Research & Correspondence series includes unpublished materials related to various time periods and research interests. Also included are oversized illustrations, maps, and floor plans related to Cahokia, Steed-Kisker, and Mesoamerica used in publications. Research areas include Mississippian Culture, Prehistoric Native Americans of the Great Plains, Pawnee & Wichita tribes, Mesoamerica, Local History (Manhattan and surrounding communities, and other hobby topics that are non-archaeological.

Box one contains various biographical information, including photographs of Pat O'Brien and Donna Roper and copies of Pat's CV and obituary. Contents also include miscellaneous newspaper articles and correspondence that are not associated with a dedicated project or research area, award nominations, and society/commission materials from Professional Archaeologists of Kansas (PAK), Iowa Archaeological Society, Kansas Antiquities Commission, Sigma Xi, Ellis Island Centennial Commission, and Plains Anthropological Society. Other materials include a collection of conference booklets and abstracts from the American Indian Workshop, Flint Hills Conference, and Plains Anthropological Conference (1969-2002).

Box 3 includes research materials and manuscripts about the Mississippian culture settlement, Cahokia.

Box four contains research related to the Plains Village era site, Steed-Kisker. Since ties to Cahokia were theorized, some tie-in for Cahokia materials is possible within the materials. Given that this site is located near Kansas City, other research materials that pertain to that locality are also housed in box four, including a manuscript of a paper on Mississippian Developments in the Kansas City Locality, infrared aerial photographs of the area, and other broader topics such as Mississippian pottery and Missourian archaeology sites. Box four also includes materials related to the Mesoamerica series.

Box six contains materials related to the Cahokia site that include notes related to Cahokia architecture and excavations. Box six also contains materials related to the Prehistoric Native Americans of the Great Plains, Mesoamerica, and the Pawnee & Wichita series.

Box seven contains materials related to research done on Native American sacred sites. Specifically, topics include Pawnee cosmology, animal lodges (and animals in general tribal contexts), and other symbolism and mythology within native tribes. Animal lodge research was conducted in a number of states including Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. Much of the materials related to this topic include corresponding slides and give further context to said slides.

Box eight includes a continuation of research materials related to Native American sacred sites. Specifically included here is research on hot springs sites in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Wyoming. Materials in box eight also correspond to slides (both North American and European) and provide further context for said slides.

Box six contains the remaining materials related to Pat's research on a Mayan measurement system. Materials in box six include site floor plans. Box six also contains related to the Mississippian, Prehistoric Native Americans of the Great Plains, and the Pawnee & Wichita series.

Oversized floor plan of Mayan site Kabah in present-day Yucatan (Mexico).

Box ten contains archaeological research materials related to the Manhattan locality or directly tied to Kansas State University (or its predecessor: Bluemont Central College). Topics include the Seger Mastadon, fossil finds and archaeological sites in Manhattan, and broader Kansas archaeology materials. Box ten also includes materials related to Oral History.

Box nine contains materials more of a hobby-related caliber and are not archaeological, but they include Pat's miscellaneous thoughts and theories separate from her archaeological research interests. Included is research conducted on Chicago's fur industry, including a paper written on the topic and transcriptions of an interview conducted by Pat with Edward Labes. Also included in box nine is research on sweet potatoes, King Richard III, the nature and effects of work, and notes on the "Emergence of Man" meetings.

Box five contains a continuation of research and materials related to Pat's Mayan measurement system research, including general research and other site floor plans.

Box ten contains archaeological research materials related to the Manhattan locality or directly tied to Kansas State University (or its predecessor: Bluemont Central College). Topics include the Seger Mastadon, fossil finds and archaeological sites in Manhattan, and broader Kansas archaeology materials. Also included are oral history interview transcripts conducted by Pat with some of her friends, including Abby Marlatt.

Photographs & Slides includes the majority of photographic material within the collection. Some items have corresponding information or research notes within other series pertaining to the research topic.

Box four contains research materials related to Mesoamerica and, more specifically, Pat's Mayan measurement system research. Items include correspondence about the project with Hanne Christiansen and others, NEH and NSF grant applications, project-related manuscripts, comments from other scholars, measurement reports, and site floor plans. Box four also includes materials related to the Prehistoric Native Americans of the Great Plains series.

Slide set twelve contains photos of sites related to research on Mayan measurement systems, as well as archaeological photos of the Art of Ancient Maya and Mexican gold objects. Related materials also include Mayan site plans within the respective series.

Slide set thirteen contains photos of sites in Europe. Countries include France, Austria, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Germany. Set fourteen is a continuation of European slides. All boxes in set fourteen contain Germany photos. Set fifteen includes photos from Italy, Malta, England, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Croatia, and Ireland. Set sixteen (boxes C - F) and set seventeen (boxes A & B) pertain specifically to European archaeology.