COLLECTING INITIATIVES
Whose history gets preserved is a choice.
These five initiatives are the Society's standing answer to that choice — long-term commitments to collect, contextualize, and steward the histories of St. Louis communities historically underrepresented in the archive.
We Are St. Louis
We Are St. Louis
An open community-history campaign. Anyone in the region can contribute photographs, letters, recordings, or objects.
Contribute your story →
AAHI
African American History Initiative
Building the largest documentary archive of Black St. Louis — through community partnership, oral history, and accession.
Partner with the Initiative →
Chinese American
Chinese American Collecting Initiative
Documenting the Chinese American experience in the St. Louis region — past and present — in partnership with the OCA-St. Louis Chapter and community elders.
Share family history →
Gateway to Pride
Gateway to Pride
An initiative recording the history of LGBTQ+ life in the St. Louis region — bars, baths, organizing, family, and community-building.
Contribute to the archive →
Pandemic Stories
Stories of the Pandemic
How St. Louisans lived through COVID-19 — diaries, photographs, signs, masks, recordings.
Share your pandemic story →