Now available online: every issue, reproduced in full color, of the Old Soldier, an 1840 Springfield campaign newspaper that promoted William Henry Harrison’s successful run for president. The Old Soldier is notable among campaign newspapers for the fact that it was co-edited by Abraham Lincoln.
Tag: illinois history
New Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection
The History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library introduces the new Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection, powered by Veridian. The Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection combines 1.2 million pages of digitized newspapers in one freely accessible location. Using Veridian Digital Library software, the IDNC offers a modern and user-friendly way to access unique research tools and engage with the past. The site includes interactive features allowing users to tag articles, correct OCR text, and share on social media. A text correction contest will be announced next month.
Library Acquires Last Extant Copies of 8 Illinois Newspapers
The History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library has acquired, through a gift from the Swearingen Memorial Library in Saint Joseph, Illinois, the final, extant copies of 8 local newspapers: the St. Joseph Record, the Olive and Gold, the Ogden Courier, Oakwood Township News, the Homer Herald, the Homer Enterprise, the Homer Chamilion, and the Fairmount Star. The Olive and Gold was the student newspaper of Saint Joseph Community High School.
Press Release:
The History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library at Illinois has recently acquired The St. Joseph Record from the St. Joseph Township-Swearingen Memorial Library. The print run of this newspaper includes 96 bound volumes from 1894 to 1980.
This fall, Susan McKinney, librarian and director at the St. Joseph Township-Swearingen Memorial Library, inquired with the University Library about transferring the newspapers to the University to better preserve them and to maximize their availability. Considering its importance for local Illinois history, the University Library responded quickly and proposed to house the collection.
“On behalf of the St. Joseph Township-Swearingen Memorial Library, I’m excited that the University of Illinois has taken ownership of these important newspapers of historical value and that they will permanently reside in a climate-controlled environment,” said McKinney.
Like almost all newspapers of its era, The St. Joseph Record was printed on inexpensive, mass-produced, wood-pulp paper. Its chemical properties cause it to become increasingly acidic and to deteriorate as it ages, especially under conditions which, because they are most conducive to human comfort, are typically found in libraries.
“Although it is impossible to reverse the deterioration of paper, we can slow that process by controlling the conditions in which the paper is stored,” said Marek Sroka, newspaper librarian at Illinois. “The St. Joseph Record will be housed in a state-of-the-art storage facility specifically designed for the long-term preservation of paper-based documents (minimal exposure to ultraviolet- and infrared-emitting light, a stable temperature of about 50° Fahrenheit, and a stable relative humidity of about 30%).
To access issues of The St. Joseph Record, make arrangements with History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library staff by calling (217) 333-1509 or emailing hpnl@library.illinois.edu.
New Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection
The History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library introduces the new Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection, powered by Veridian. The Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection combines 1.2 million pages of digitized newspapers in one freely accessible location. Using Veridian Digital Library software, the IDNP offers a modern and user-friendly way to access unique research tools and engage with the past.
The site includes interactive features allowing users to tag articles, correct OCR text, and share on social media. A text correction contest will be announced next month.
Updates to the Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection
We are pleased to announce the addition of 50,916 pages of digital newspaper content to the Illinois Digital Newspaper Collection. The latest update adds the years 1903-1915 of the Urbana Daily Courier and the years 1936-1945 of the Daily Illini.
More info (no longer available).
Introducing the Digital Daily Illini
On April 17, we officially launched the Digital Daily Illini (1916-1936). View photos from our event.
Introducing the Digital Urbana Daily Courier 1916-1925
Published from 1897 through March 1979 under a succession of titles, the Urbana Daily Courier provides rich documentation of the development of commerce and industry, the course of local and regional politics, and the history of cultural and social life in our community, as well as the local experience of global events.