About
Conducting Research
Listed on this page are collections preserved by libraries, museums, and archives that are available to everyone -- student, scholar, or any interested person. Some materials are available freely online (indicated with an unlocked icon). Other collections of physical materials require visiting the organization to consult the materials.
Please contact each organization directly for full information about access, or with questions about the materials.
About the Ferguson Collecting Initiative
Joined together as a collective of institutions made up of individuals from different St. Louis communities, this collecting initiative exemplifies that we all have a stake in making sure that our individual and collective stories are represented in all of their diversity and complexity. These materials show the development of a movement that stems from the unfortunate death of Michael Brown, Jr. and supports the healing of the Ferguson community and surrounding area. Our intent is to use these collections to create opportunities for engagement and learning, and we are committed to making these collections broadly available for the benefit of all.
This research guide is maintained by Washington University Libraries. For question regarding the page, including link updates, please contact spec@wumail.wustl.edu
Ferguson Municipal Public Library
- StoryCorps Grant - Oral HistoryIn 2015 Ferguson Public Municipal Library received a grant to conduct oral history interviews as part of the StoryCorps initiative.
Ferguson Commission
- Windmiller reflects on Ferguson Commission’s workArticle - Rose Windmiller of Washington University in St. Louis talks about her service on the Ferguson Commission
- Ferguson Commision Documents - STL Positive ChangeLinks to the Commission's documents, minutes, budget reports, and presentations (in pdf).
Missouri History Museum
- Vincent Toles Jr. Poster Collectionincludes four copies of a poster that Toles created prior to the Ferguson unrest as a commentary on the city's troubled racial past and its current racial climate
University of Missouri
- Framing Ferguson: a content analysis of St. Louis news media coverage of the Ferguson protests (2015)Journalism Masters Thesis - This study sought to determine how three St. Louis news outlets framed the protests in Ferguson over the course of four weeks in August and November 2014.
St. Louis Community College
- Ferguson unrest \ St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley, 2014-Print newspaper collection created in August 2014; The purpose of the collection is to provide researchers with a comprehensive view of contemporary print newspaper accounts as they unfolded during the first two weeks of this event. While these news accounts are available from the publisher in digital format, the print format provides a certain amount of flexibility and maneuverability.
Washington University in St. Louis
- Documenting Ferguson - OnlineDocumenting Ferguson is a freely available resource that seeks to preserve and make accessible the digital media captured and created by community members following the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, on August 9, 2014. Our project has the ultimate goal of providing diverse perspectives on the events in Ferguson and the resulting social dialogue. Contribute your voice to the discussion by adding your images, videos or personal stories to the collection.
- Internet Archive #blacklivesmatter Web ArchiveIn August of 2014, the Archive-It team put out a call for URLs related to the August 9th shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. Archive-It partner Washington University in St. Louis contributed lists of URLs and solicited URLs from communities in and around Ferguson. [follow link for more info]
- St. Louis Students in Solidarity Records (WUA00402), 2014
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Archived collection of posters used in demonstrations for #HandsUpWalkOut and #FergusonOctober in 2014. - Documenting Ferguson Collection (WUA00429), 2014-2015
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Archive collection of paper items (flyers, posters, and newspapers) collected in parallel with online submissions to "Documenting Ferguson" - Moral Panics and Body Cameras, 2015Washington University Law Review Article -- evaluates public support for equipping law enforcement with body cameras as a response and solution to events in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014.
- Epilogue: Moral Panics and Body Cameras, 2015This brief follow-up to Moral Panics and Body Cameras comments on the weeks after that essay was published and what those events show about the efficacy of body cameras and video evidence as a response to police-public conflicts.
- The Far-Reaching Shadow Cast By Ferguson, 2015Washington University Journal of Law & Policy Article - Citing examples of recent police shootings and beatings of unarmed African-Americans and personal and family experiences, Professor Norwood argues that our country is broken and needs fixing. Professor Norwood concludes that we are not the ‘post-racial’ society we claim to be and that the Michael Brown shooting, among others, provides a watershed moment to confront our country’s underlying racial issues.
- Four Essays in Education and Epidemiology (2016)Education Masters Thesis - exploring the nexus of race, education, and health in the United States, including Ferguson, Missouri.
- Destination Ferguson: Looking at Urban Sustainability Challenges through the Lens of Engineering Ethics, Leadership, and Conflict ManagementSpring 2016 presentation: "Small Scale Analysis of the Municipal Court System in St. Louis County"
- Before and After Michael Brown—Toward an End to Structural and Actual Violence, 2015Washington University Journal of Law & Policy Article - tracing the historical sources of racism as it intersects with policing and the justice system through the twentieth century and demonstrates how it pervades many aspects of American culture
- Policing, Race, and Mind: Ferguson and BeyondMarch 27, 2015 symposium held at Washington University. Includes list of resources and suggested readings.
National / Other Collections
- Ferguson Grand Jury DocumentsCollected by New York University, as published by CNN in 2014. Full-text online
- Art Became the Oxygen: A Guide to Artistic Response,Katrina to Ferguson & beyond: read @usartsdept's guide to artistic, compassionate response to disaster #ArtResponds