Ancestry Magazine

Do you want to know what happened in the world while you were at work? Do you wonder what happened at the local council meeting last night? In today’s world, you might turn on the television to CNN or pull up your favorite news page on the Internet. You might even pick up the newspaper, just as your ancestors did.

There is still no better way to gain insight into our modern world, as well as the life and times of our ancestors, than through newspapers. Where else could you find a daily, detailed record of world events that shaped the thinking of the populace as well as the pragmatic details of everyday existence? Newspapers have ads for goods and services, legal notices, gossipy neighborhood columns as well as the more familiar notices of births, marriages, and deaths.

The good news is that most counties, cities, and even local church and civic groups had a newspaper. And in the nineteenth century, many towns often had two newspapers. These papers can be important sources to learn not only about local, community, and regional social history but also about your family. News articles of county weeklies give glimpses into the everyday life of ancestors not available through other means.

Most genealogists routinely use newspapers to search for vital events for their families: obituaries, announcements of births and weddings, and other important life events. But the next time you look at the obituary section, take a few minutes to scan the rest of the paper. What was happening in the world on that day? Read the neighborhood columns to learn who was visiting, traveling, entertaining, or ill. Here are a few tips to help evaluate and locate information in this valuable historical resource.

Social, Business, and Political Details
News Coverage. What was happening in the world and how was it reported? What emphasis and amount of space did the events command? What local events were covered and what controversies and emotions can be gleaned from the articles? Is the article on the front page or buried inside? The activities of local and national politicians, local celebrities, and important figures are often reported and may have been the topic of conversation around the family dinner table of your ancestors.

Advertisements. Look closely at what is advertised. Ads for elixirs that cure liver spots, fever, and other illnesses reveal attitudes and beliefs about society. If the family farm was sold, it might have been advertised in the real estate section. What products were offered for sale, and how might these have been used by someone in your family? What is the cost of the articles for sale? How does that jive with the income of the family?

Business and Stock News. Most newspapers have a section devoted to the local economy. The price of livestock and crops is often reported in great detail. You’ll find what new businesses are opening in the area. Local precursors to a chamber of commerce will tout the growth of a new establishment.

Society Pages. High-society families will be showcased in the society columns, and these snippets of social life can be fascinating glimpses into a world inhabited by the well-to-do. But even if your family did not make the society pages, there are many occasions that would warrant their mention in the local papers, especially the weekly and special-interest papers.

Neighborhood Columns. A particularly entertaining and insightful part of the local papers is the neighborhood gossip column. Remember that reporters may have reported on more established, well-to-do families than on newer, less affluent arrivals in town.

These columns often list who dined with whom, who traveled to visit friends and families in another town, and who was visiting the area. The articles are, of course, important for locating branches of the family that migrated to another area, but they also portray what local residents thought was interesting and noteworthy. Was there a party? Did someo ne entertain the parson for Sunday dinner? Was someone ill? Each piece of information should be considered not only for what it says about our families, but also for what it says about the times in which our families lived.

Death Records. Many early obituaries can be quite detailed. Some give the names of parents and siblings, dates of migration, along with major events in the person’s life. One researcher’s brick wall was solved by a death announcement in a small town paper printed in the 1890s. It gave the maiden name, parents’ names, and siblings of a ninety-year-old widow. Since the marriage certificate could not be found, this death announcement was the only way the widow’s father could be discovered. A will subsequently found in an adjoining county confirmed the parentage.

Legal announcements are also a rich source of information. Legal notices regarding settlements of estates or notices to make claims on estates prior to settlement routinely appeared in newspapers.

Images. The photographic record that local newspapers have preserved is another motivation for searching this source. Some newspapers archive their photographic collections at local libraries.

Special-interest Papers
Ethnic groups, religious and fraternal organizations, and other special-interest groups often published their own newspapers. While the coverage is far from uniform, what has been preserved can be priceless. Be sure to check these sources.

Special-interest papers are particularly useful in gaining insight into the times and people of the area as well as the local hot topics. These publications can give clues about the origins of the families, the controversies they faced, and the challenges they may have had to overcome.

Evaluating What You Find
While newspapers are a rich source of information, there are also pitfalls to be aware of. You will find biases, problems with the timing of reporting, and inaccurate data. Information found in newspapers should be evaluated and verified with primary documents whenever possible.

Biases. Early newspapers were often political organs. As a result, stories may have been excluded or they may have been slanted. Look for newspapers in surrounding areas or a larger city in the vicinity to get another perspective of the story.

Timing of Events. Since many of the local papers were published weekly, stories were not necessarily published immediately. And some stories may never have appeared since it was old news by the time the paper was printed. As a result of delays in reporting, it is wise to search for obituaries or announcements at least several weeks after the event. Searches in the few weeks preceding the death may yield stories that hint at an impending event. For example, reports of illnesses and visits by relatives (particularly those living at a distance) may mean that the last visits prior to an anticipated death had begun.

Inaccuracies. Events hastily reported may be erroneous. Newspaper stories then and now contain inaccurate statements. For example, obituaries may not report all survivors or may incorrectly report their names and relationships. Dates may be wrong.

Regional Searches. Many times, newspapers would share stories with surrounding area newspapers. If an article can’t be located, or if there are no newspapers for the dates of interest, consult papers in nearby cities or counties. If the town has ties to other areas or towns, those papers should be examined for the story as well.

Regional searches are often necessary to help locate elderly or widowed parents who left home in their declining years to live with a son or daughter. Hometown papers may have carried announcements of the deaths of their long-time residents who moved away prior to their deaths.

Newspapers have played a vital role in the nation’s history from its inception. They inform, educate, publicize, facilitate business and economic development, and much more.

There is a wealth of information in newspapers and more of them than ever are being indexed to facilitate easy use. While the research required to use them is often time-consuming, the rewards are certainly worth it.

Roseann Reinemuth Hogan, Ph.D., has been researching her family history since 1978. Her special interests include oral histories and social history.