Off-Campus Access

Emmett Till Example This page provides an example of a research process along with links to databases used and samples of primary and secondary sources found. This search example is fairly simple since most material can be found by simply searching for Emmett Till's name. Most of the databases on this page are restricted to UW students, staff and faculty. These are marked with a lock . To connect to these databases from home you will need to first click on the Off-Campus Access link in the upper-right hand corner and login.

1. Finding some quick context -- names, places, dates, stats
   • Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History [Suz Ref E185 E54 1996]
   • Dictionary of American History [Suz Ref E174 .D52 2003]
   • Racial & Religious Violence in America: A Chronology [Suz Ref HN90 V5 R33 1991]
   • African American Desk Reference [Suz Ref E185 A2527 1999]

2. Finding newspaper coverage (primary sources)
   • Historic New York Times
     • Mississippi to Sift Negro Boy's Slaying, 9/2/1955
     • Mississippi Jury Acquits 2 Accused in Youth's Killing, 9/24/1955

3. Finding magazine coverage (primary sources)
   • Reader's Guide Retrospective
     • Mississippi: The Place, the Acquital, Newsweek 10/3/1955
     • Emmett Till's Day in Court, Life 10/3/1955
     • In Memoriam, Emmett Till, Life 10/10/1955

4. Finding African American perspectives (primary sources)
   • Kaiser Index to Black Resources 1948-1986 [Suz Ref Z1361 N39 K34 1992] - sample page
     • Nation Shocked, Vow Action in Lynching of Chicago Youth, Chicago Defender 9/10/1955
     • Mississippi Barbarism, Crisis Oct. 1955
     • 3rd Lynching of Year Shocks Nation, Afro-American 9/10/1955
     • Nation Horrified, Jet 9/15/1955
     • Will Mississippi Whitewash the Emmett Till Slaying? Jet 10/6/1955

5. Finding Letters (primary sources)
   • Browse issues after an article was published
     • Life, 10/24/1955
     • Afro-American, 9/24/1955
     • Chicago Defender, 10/15/1955
     • Chicago Defender, 11/19/1955
   • Browse through the NAACP Papers
     • Sample letters, NAACP, Pt. 18, series C reel 15

6. Finding Other Primary Sources
   • UW Libraries Catalog - search for: emmett till and sources
     • The lynching of Emmett Till: a documentary narrative
   • On the Web
     Memories from American Experience documentary, The Murder of Emmett Till
     • Eisenhower government documents on Till case

7. Finding Secondary Sources
   • UW Libraries Catalog
     • A Death in the Delta: The Story of Emmett Till
   • America History & Life
     • "Resurrecting Emmett Till: The Catalyst of the Modern Civil Rights Movement", Journal of Black Studies 29(2): 179-188, 1998.
     • "Different Assignments, Different Perspectives: How Reporters Reconstruct the Emmett Till Civil Rights Murder Trial", Oral History Review 29(1):29-58, 2002.

Image: Emmett Till