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Research Guides

Newspapers as Primary Sources

Frontpage of the New York Gazette.

Newspapers are a primary source providing a first rough draft of events.  Since most newspapers are local in scope, there is good coverage of local issues.  Newspapers also provide a good feel for the time period. 

Most older newspapers do not include indexing.  You mayl need to browse through issues of a newspaepr to discover its content. 

Help: Analyzing Newspapers,  Analyzing a Colonial Newspaper,  Newspapers, & Late to the Feast: Newspapers as Historical Sources

News by Date

These pages provide chronological listings of popular news sources and magazines published in the Pacific Northwest, the United States, and around the World. 

 

These Date lists are not comprehensive. The UW Libraries has many more newspapers available in print, on microfilm, and online. To identify more newspapers held in the UW Libraries:

  • Use the E-Newspapers page or News by Date pages on this News Guide to identify databases that you can search for news stories published about your topic. 
  • Use UW Libraries Search to locate newspapers by title or place of publication.  Type in thplace AND newspaper.  For example:  Seattle AND newspaper.  On the results screen choose the Resource Type "Journals" from the left toolbar.
  • Search our Microforms & Newspapers Collection database to see which newspapers we hold in print and on microfilm. 

Not finding what you need?  Ask Us

Historical Newspapers Online