Early American Newspapers: Series 9, 1832-1922

(Updated July 2016)

Early American Newspapers, Series 9, features full runs through 1922 of important, long-running titles from diverse regions of the U.S.  Each is notable for its depth of 19th- and early 20th-century news coverage, as exemplified by the large number of pages in every issue.  Also in Series 9 are significant 19th-century newspapers which chronicle the Jacksonian Era, the war with Mexico and Western expansion, the Civil War and Reconstruction. Together, the titles in Series 9 further expand the political, geographical and chronological depth of Early American Newspapers.  Titles include:

Auburn Daily Bulletin (New York)

• Located in northwestern New York, Auburn became a major railroad link between the coal mines of Pennsylvania and the ports of the Great Lakes. One of the best dailies in the region, the Auburn Daily Bulletin chronicles the economic growth of the Erie Canal and Finger Lakes area, and developments at Auburn Prison, which had been founded in 1816 and became a model—called the “Auburn System”—for penal reform across the country.
• Includes 2,120 issues published between 1870 and 1876

Bay City Times (Michigan)

• The population of Michigan doubled between 1870 and 1890, sparked by the timber and ship-building industries, both of which were in full operation in Bay City when the Times began publishing in 1889. The Bay City Times chronicles the dramatic changes in the region as the automobile industry created a massive influx of immigrant workers and the American labor movement divided the state both socially and politically.
• Includes 12,139 issues published between 1889 and 1922.

The Boston Herald (Massachusetts)

• From its founding, The Boston Herald was a new kind of newspaper for Boston. It was affordable (at a penny per issue) and it covered the interests of all, not just the mercantile class. It contained stories on society, sports, crime, and the arts, in addition to the usual politics and business. For today’s researchers, this is much richer material than anything preceding it in Boston’s newspapers. By 1872 the Herald had a daily circulation of 100,000—the highest in Boston and tied (with New York’s Daily News and Sun) for the highest in America. Coverage here runs from the Antebellum Period through the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the influx of immigrants in the 1890s to World War I and the Russian Revolution.
• Includes 22,009 issues published between 1848 and 1922.

Boston Traveller (Massachusetts)

• The daily and weekly versions of this prominent 19th-century newspaper were competitors to The Boston Herald. They offer researchers a different editorial perspective on important events of the era, including the pro-slavery and anti-slavery debates, the secessionist movement in the South and Middle Atlantic region, the Civil War, and Reconstruction.
• Includes 7,019 issues of The Boston Traveler published between 1837 and 1876. Early American Newspapers, Series 7 includes 1,236 issues published between 1825 and 1837.

Cape Ann Light and Gloucester Telegraph (Massachusetts)

• Published in Gloucester, Massachusetts, one of New England’s oldest ship-building and fishing centers, the Cape Ann Light and Gloucester Telegraph chronicles the waning fortunes of the whaling industry, the emergence of the New England Temperance movement, the influx of European immigrants, and the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
• Includes 1,154 issues published between 1843 and 1873.

Daily Graphic (New York, N.Y.)

• Founded in 1873, The Daily Graphic was the first American newspaper with daily illustrations—an impressive feat given the technology then available for printing illustrated material. The paper offers researchers lavish engravings, including cartoons, reproductions of paintings, and illustrations of contemporary news events and notable personalities.
• Includes 1,091 issues published between 1873 and 1877

Marietta Journal (Georgia)

• The predecessor to today’s Marietta Daily Journal, one of northern Georgia’s oldest and most respected newspapers, the Marietta Journal chronicles the difficulties facing the South during the early decades of the 20th century. Central among these were the scars of the Reconstruction era, the continuity of racial segregation, and the uneven economic transition from agriculture to manufacturing.
• Includes 1,464 issues published between 1892 and 1922.

Newark Daily Advertiser (New Jersey)

• Founded in 1832, the Newark Daily Advertiser was the first paper in Newark, New Jersey, and one of only a few dailies published at the time. Widely respected and hugely successful, it grew to become the Newark Star-Ledger, the largest paper in the state. The Daily Advertiser offers a detailed daily account of regional and national American history from the Jacksonian era to the Civil War.
• Includes 9,773 issues published between 1832 and 1866

Richmond Times-Dispatch (Virginia)

• Created in 1903 by the merger of the Times and the Dispatch, the Times-Dispatch became the newspaper of record for Richmond, the capital of Virginia. The Richmond Times-Dispatch chronicles the growth of Virginia in the early decades of the 20th century, and, due to its proximity to the nation’s capital, the paper also includes detailed reporting on federal legislation and national politics.
• Includes 7,143 issues published between 1903 and 1922

Rockford Register Star predecessors: The Daily Register, Morning Star and Register-Gazette (Illinois)

• One of the oldest and largest newspapers in Illinois, the Rockford Register Star was created by the mergers of many papers, notably these three, which began in 1873 when Rockford was on its way to becoming one of the nation’s largest furniture manufacturing centers. The Daily Register, Morning Star, and Register-Gazette chronicle the economic growth of the Midwest, along with the ethnic tensions and labor-union battles that came in its wake.
• Includes 4,468 issues of The Daily Register published between 1873 and 1891; 10,770 issues of the Morning Star published between 1888 and 1922; and 9,997 issues of the Register-Gazette published between 1891 and 1922.

San Diego Union-Tribune predecessors: San Diego Union and Evening Tribune (California)

• The predecessors of San Diego’s oldest and most important newspaper, the San Diego Tribune (recently renamed U-T San Diego), chronicle the explosive growth of the city and the region from its founding to World War I. They offer researchers in-depth coverage of—and opposing views on—the first transcontinental railroad link to Southern California, rapid growth of the region following the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, and the growing presence of U.S. Naval facilities in the city.
• Includes 19,894 issues of The San Diego Union published between 1871 and 1922, and 8,741 issues of the Evening Tribune published between 1895 and 1922.

Tampa Tribune (Florida)

• Founded in 1895, the Tampa Tribune is one of Florida’s oldest and most important newspapers. It chronicles Tampa’s early years as a center of cigar manufacturing, the influx of Hispanic and African-American immigrants, the city’s role as an embarkation point during the Spanish-American War, the rise of organized crime during Prohibition, and the sudden growth of tourism during the early decades of the 20th century.
• Includes 9,530 issues published between 1895 and 1922.