Historical Newspapers

U.S. pre-Civil War newspapers, with special emphasis on the period up to 1801, and New York City newspapers are the strongest areas of the newspaper collection at the Humanities and Social Sciences Library. For New York City titles, see New York City Newspapers in this guide. In addition, the library holds a good selection of British newspapers, especially London papers, and titles from former British colonies. Among U.S. newspapers of note, the library holds extensive collections of Franklin’s Gazette and Bradford’s Journal (Philadelphia), North Carolina newspapers before 1800, the Virginia Gazette and the Kentucky Gazette. The collection also includes a notable group of Cherokee newspapers from 1828 to 1853, as well as the famous issue of the Vicksburg Daily Citizen of July 2, 1864—set by its Confederate staff but printed by Union soldiers after the fall of the city.

Searching for old newspaper titles, up to 1865, may require using a combination of strategies and searching multiple sources because many of those holdings cannot be found in CATNYP, the library’s online catalog. Following is a list of suggested resources, in sequential order of consultation, to help you locate historical newspaper titles within the research libraries.

CATNYP, the Research Libraries’ online catalog; available from any computer with an Internet connection.
Dictionary Catalog of the Research Libraries of the New York Public Library, 1911–1971, Pub. Cat. South wall (Room 315) and Newspaper Division (Room 108). A photographic record of the original card catalog of the Research Libraries, contains records of books and periodicals acquired by the Library prior to 1972. Arranged primarily by author and subject; periodicals are listed by title.
Dictionary Catalog of the Rare Books Division, *KAD 78-177 (Rare Books, Room 328) and Room 315. Organized by title.
The imprint catalog in the Rare Book Division, Pub. Cat. 00-4773 East wall (Room 315) and Rare Books (Room 328). Organized by place of publication.
See Resources for NYPL Newspaper Titles below for specialized lists.

For assistance in researching older newspapers, please see a reference librarian at the desk in Room 315 or in Room 100 (Microforms). If you are not in the library, you may also e-mail us for assistance at grdref@nypl.org.

Resources for NYPL Newspaper Titles

American Centennial Newspapers: A Collection of American Newspapers Celebrating the Centennial [microform], *ZAN-13544. Centennial issues (1876) of newspapers across the country in 40 reels of microfilms.

Checklist of Newspapers and Official Gazettes in the New York Public Library, 1915, Pub. Cat. Shelf 46. Includes three different indexes of NYPL's newspapers as of 1915: a geographical, a title and a chronological index.

Collection of unbound American newspapers in the Rare Book Room, 1801-1983 [microform], *Z-3527R and Z-3527-A (supplement). Catalog of historical newspapers of which the library may hold only a few issues or a few years. Binder available behind the Information Desk in the Microform Division (Room 100). An expanded and annotated version of this binder is available in the Rare Books Division (Room 328) under the title U.S. Newspapers in the New York Public Library Research Libraries. Arranged by state, city and title.

Early American Newspapers, ZAN-7473. Paper list available at the Information Desk of the Microform Div. (Room 100). The list is organized by state, city and newspaper title.

German P.O.W. Camp Papers [microform], *ZAN-13541. Library has 1943–46; reel 1 includes a comprehensive index.

U.S. Newspapers in the New York Public Library Research Libraries, (Dublin, Ohio: OCLC, 1994), Pub. Cat. 94-4573 Information Desk; (Room 315), 94-4574 Microform Div. (Room 100). Most comprehensive catalog for NYPL newspapers holdings; copies also available in other divisions.

Newspaper Directories (Historical)

If you cannot find the title you are searching in the Research Libraries’ collection, you may consult the following resources to find titles at other institutions. (See also Resources at Other Institutions in this guide.)

The following resources are located behind the Reference Desk in Room 315, as well as in other locations.

American Newspapers, 1821-1936 (Gregory), Pub. Cat. 75-751 Shelf 14. Lists newspapers found in U.S. and Canadian libraries—as well as those preserved in county courthouses, newspaper offices and private collections when possible. Arranged alphabetically by state or province and city, then by title keyword. A 5-volume alphabetical index to the titles listed in American Newspapers is also available, Pub. Cat. 98-4485, Information Desk, upper shelf.

History and Bibliography of American Newspapers, 1690–1820 (Brigham), Pub. Cat. 87-1726, Shelf 14. Lists newspapers by state, city, title, including historical account of title/publisher’s name changes. Also included are names of holding libraries and publishing statistics.

Newspapers in Microform: United States, 1948–1983, Pub. Cat. 74-117, Shelf 9. Newspapers are listed by state, city and title, along with holding institutions.

Newspapers in Microform: Foreign Countries, 1948–1983, Pub. Cat. 79-863, Shelf 9. Entries are arranged by country, city and title, along with holding institutions.

Ulrich’s Periodicals Directory, *D (Ulrich’s periodicals directory), 1932–38, 1943–63; continued by Ulrich’s International Periodicals Directory, JFM00-116, 1965/66–2000. Must be requested with slip from Room 315. (See also Current Newspapers in this guide.)

United States Newspaper Program National Union List: June 1985, Pub. Cat. 86-515, Information Desk, upper shelf. Includes bibliographic, location, and holdings information derived from the collections of newspaper repositories—libraries, archives, and historical societies—that participate in the United States Newspaper Program (USNP).

Willing’s Press Guide, NARN (Willing’s Press Guide) 1879–, incomplete holdings. Must be requested with slip from Room 315. (See also Current Newspapers in this guide.)