British Newspaper Archive Goes Digital

The British Library, in collaboration with online publisher, Brightsolid, has opened an online newspaper archive spanning more than 200 years.

Announced in May 2010, the partnership with Brightsolid, which is expected to yield a collection of  up to 40 million newspaper pages over the next 10 years, has seen the online publisher digitise up to 8,000 pages of historic newspapers a day for the last 12 months, said the British Library in a statement.

As events took place

This resource, ranging from crime reports to advertisements, will give people a unique perspective on historical events, not necessarily published in conventional accounts, according to the statement.

“The British Newspaper Archive Website will offer access to up to four million fully searchable pages, featuring more than 200 newspaper titles from every part of the UK and Ireland. The newspapers – which mainly date from the 19^th century, but which include runs dating back to the first half of the 18^th century – cover every aspect of local, regional and national news,” it stated.

Bob Satchwell, executive director of the Society of Editors, said: “The British Newspaper Archive Website opens up a magical new window on a magnificent treasure store of real history, recording the lives of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in vibrant communities, rather than merely the cold facts of politics and pestilence. Thank goodness ageing newspapers are being brought back to life through new partnerships and modern, accessible media, to enthrall new generations.”