August 22, 1015
I wrote about the Coe Library at the University of Wyoming last week. One of the most interesting parts of the tour was the discussion of the Wyoming Newspaper Project which is a joint effort between the University and the Wyoming State Library.
Wyoming has had a digital newspaper project for several years, but it has recently been upgraded. The project allows researchers to search newspapers from throughout the state. It covers newspapers from as early as 1849 until well into the 21st century. The new, improved project is a big step forward from the earlier project. Anyone with Wyoming ancestors will undoubtedly find new information.
For those of us whose ancestors didn’t come from Wyoming, don’t worry. Nearly every state has its own historic newspaper project dedicated to digitizing and preserving its newspapers. The easiest way to find out what is available for any state is to google the state’s name followed by “historic newspapers.”
Another place to find out what is available is the Wikipedia article called “List of Online Newspaper Archives” at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:List_of_online_newspaper_archives . This is a listing of digital newspapers available for each state. It also lists newspaper archives for almost any country you can imagine. It includes everywhere from the Falkland Islands to Japan. Both free and pay for view sites are included.
Over the years I have used newspaper projects from various states. In my experience, the mechanics of using each site may vary a little, but most of them are straightforward. Most let you search by name and narrow your search by location and date.
Coverage varies from state to state. Some states have digitized nearly all the existing newspapers from their area. Because of financial constraints and other reasons, other states may not have digitized as many papers.
The biggest limitation to the content of newspaper projects is copyright law. In general, any articles published in newspapers before 1929 are considered in the public domain. This means anyone can freely copy articles, use and share them however they want. Articles after 1929 are usually not public domain, although there are some exceptions.
The state newspaper projects are free. Another free newspaper resource is the Library of Congress’s “Chronicling America” at https://www.loc.gov/collections/chronicling-america/titles/?searchType=advanced&st=table&sb=title_s_asc . Newspapers from every state may be found here. “Chronicling America” contains many of the same newspaper titles and editions as can be found on the various state sites, but there are some differences. This makes it worthwhile to check both the state projects and “Chronicling America.”
Finally, there are several pay sites for newspapers such as Newspapers.com and Genealogy Bank. The coverage that these sites provide often overlaps what can be found on the state newspaper sites. There can be differences, however. Checking the paid sites may uncover newspapers that can’t be found elsewhere.
State historic newspaper sites are one of the best places to find out about your ancestors. No matter what their station in life, you will undoubtedly find articles about them that reveal stories that you never knew before.
Carol Stetser
Researcher
Larimer Genealogical Society