One hundred and fifty years ago, one of the best methods of sharing information was through the newspaper. In The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy,, James L. Hansen addresses the evolution of newspapers. Referring to the newspapers of the early 1800s, he writes:

"The early newspaper was very much a local product, designed to convey news of the wider world to the citizens of a particular community. Little attention was given to local news which everyone presumably knew already. Three nineteenth-century developments changed the newspaper dramatically: the invention of the power printing press, the development of the railroads (which allowed much wider distribution of a paper), and the increasing demand for news, particularly during the Civil War."

Mr. Hansen goes on to explain that major city dailies that could gather news with a telegraph and had more press power and train access began to dominate the delivery of international, national and state news. Smaller local papers were then forced to "concentrate on local news if they were to survive and prosper."

This meant that people leaving on vacation would publicize their plans in the paper. A bar mitzvah or a birthday party might be reported. It seems that no detail was too trivial to include, as long as it might be of interest to the locals.

VIEW ANCESTORS EPISODE 210: NEWSPAPERS AS RECORDS

Episode Description

Clues to family history can come from the most surprising places. Lori Davis was given a mysterious lead when a woman who had known one of her ancestors said, "Look in the San Francisco papers; she was in trouble with the law." Old newspaper stories detail the escapades of Lori's great-grandmother, a 1920s high society con woman. Experts add their advice on how to use newspapers to expand family history research.

Discussion Questions

• What two pieces of information do you need to know in order to use newspapers in your family history search?
• How can you find out if the town still exists or has only changed its name?
• What is an obituary?
• What kinds of information can usually be found in today's typical obituaries?

Information you find is most believable when it is:

• recorded by an eyewitness, meaning someone who had first-hand knowledge or experience with an event, relationship or some other matter in question.
• preserved in its original format
• preserved in a clear and certain way so that it is directly understood, such as "John Ballard married Mary Kee on 17 November 1789"
• consistent with the presumed facts that are found in one or more other sources.

ACTIVITY

Look at a contemporary local newspaper. Ignore the advertisements and the articles about famous people and politicians and look for notices, announcements and quotes from ordinary, every day people. What types of information do you find? What facts are included, and how do you know they are believable? What facts could the reporter have better explained? What might he or she have left out?

Next, go to the library and look up old papers from the early 1900s. What differences do you notice between old newspapers and the papers of today?

. . . WHAT'S NEXT?
Though it may sound odd, your ancestor's death is a wonderful source of information on your family. Many ancestors wrote wills and the directions in the wills had to be legally carried out. This process generated a lot of paper that can add unique details to your ancestor's life and death.