How to search and find items

These tips will help you search for and access material from our collections.

Search the catalogue

Use keywords or search by title, author or subject.

If you are searching more broadly on the topic, start by using subject headings like:

• Protest movements -- Australia
• Social movements -- Australia
• Social change -- Australia

For a specific search, start simple and choose a few distinctive words. Use words that relate to the event you are researching.

Example: if you search “Ballarat 1854”, it will bring up results for the Eureka Stockade because this is where it took place.

Remember to make sure all words are spelt correctly, otherwise no results will appear.

Learn more about how to use the catalogue.

Search the catalogue now

Filter search results

Narrow your results after your first initial word search, using the options on the right side (including format, E-resources, author, subject area, series or decade). Some of the best results come from a simple word search with one option applied to narrow results.

• Example: this search for “Vietnam War” where we selected Format > Pictures to limit the search.

Browse by subject

When you find a result that you like, find the subject headings in the record and use them to find other materials on the same topic. You can select the subject heading of an item in the collection to find more items on that topic. They might be general, or very specific.

Some examples are:

• Protest movements
• Eureka Stockade, Ballarat, Vic., 1854
• Black lives matter movement -- Australian Capital Territory -- Canberra -- Photographs

Search Trove

You can use Trove to explore resources from our collections, as well as from other institutions including state and university libraries.

By category

You can use the Categories tab in Trove search to identify specific types of protest material. Archived newspapers are always useful, but you might want to look further afield to Images, Maps & Artefacts for visual records of protest.

Search the Web Archive

The Web Archive is an excellent place to find online records, news and websites for contemporary movements and protest, like:

• Schools Strike for Climate
• George Floyd protests

There are also some archived websites from as early as 1996. Historical snapshots of websites can show you point-in-time information, like:

• UN Youth Australia
• Amnesty International Australia
  • David Hicks national day of protest
  • Approaches voicing dissent during COVID-19 lockdowns

Use hashtags

When searching contemporary journal articles, news sources and archived websites for information about protest movements, slogans and hashtags can be an effective way to identify material. For example:

• 2011 Anti-Carbon Tax Rally, search ‘Convoy of No Confidence’
• Gender equality rallies, search ‘March4Justice’
• 2021 anti-vaccine rallies in Australia, search #WewillALLbethere

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Get help with your research

Our specialist staff can help you with your research, to locate resources and to use our microfilm and scanning equipment but they cannot undertake extensive or ongoing genealogical, historical or other research on your behalf.

Find out more in our Information and Research Policy.

Ask a Librarian

Where else to look

You can use also use Trove to discovery historical collections held by other libraries, galleries, archives and museums.

Many of Australia’s university libraries and archives also have online material or records of their physical collections. These often include records of student politics and campus protests. For example, the Melbourne University Archive includes records and links to resources from the the Malcolm Fraser collection, including materials relating to:

• protesting the Vietnam war
• censorship protests
• French nuclear testing in the Pacific