More on free to access content on the British Newspaper Archive

Although I have previously covered this from a Scottish and Irish perspective (see http://scottishgenes.blogspot.com/2022/09/a-further-million-free-to-view-pages-on.html), this is the press release from Findmypast which I have just received about the recent release of additional free to access content on the British Newspaper Archive site (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk):

1 million pages of nation’s historical newspapers made free by British Library and Findmypast in digitisation project

• 1 million pages of British Library’s vast historical archive added online for free by Findmypast
• Most significant mass digitisation project of newspapers ever in UK, making over 300 years of nation’s history available to anyone, anywhere
• Publications represent an unparalleled cultural resource to discover the UK’s colourful history in black and white
• As trusted partners of the British Library, Findmypast are committed to making 5 million pages free over five years on the British Newspaper Archive and Findmypast Findmypast and the British Library have made one million pages of historical newspapers available online for free to the public, as part of a long-term partnership to improve the accessibility of these nationally important collections to people across the globe.

The additions mark a new milestone for the project of 2 million pages, with a goal of digitising and releasing five million free pages over five years. The newspapers are available online via Findmypast and The British Newspaper Archive (BNA) – a dedicated site created jointly by the British Library and Findmypast.

Much of this content has been made available as part of several major digitisation projects based at the British Library: 19th Century Newspapers; Heritage Made Digital, which seeks to transform digital
access to the British Library’s rare and early collections; and the Living with Machines research project, a collaboration between the British Library, The Alan Turing Institute and five partner universities, and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) via UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) Strategic Priorities Fund.

These free pages, covering the years 1699-1900 across 245 titles, increase the accessibility of historical newspapers to people around the world. The public can browse the beautiful images of the Illustrated London Life, discover their Scottish roots in the Glasgow Herald, or explore the history of Ireland with the United Irishman. One particularly intriguing title is Berthold’s Political Handkerchief, famously printed on calico, a type of fabric, in order to get around paying the newspaper stamp tax of the time. Also included are free pages of Welsh language titles Y Tyst and Y Llan, 22,113 pages from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and 167,534 pages from Scotland, including the Edinburgh Gazette of 1699, the oldest newspaper digitised by the project so far.

Tamsin Todd, CEO at Findmypast said: "With free access to this unparalleled resource, Findmypast and the British library are offering the public unique opportunities to uncover the colourful stories behind historical events both great and small as they happened. Each page offers a snapshot of what life was like at that moment, documenting family stories, local legends and momentous events alike, transforming our understanding of both the past and the present. Some people will even discover their own ancestors hiding within these pages. I’d encourage everyone to go and explore this collection online, on the BNA or Findmypast.”

Xerxes Mazda, Head of Collections and Curation at the British Library, said: “We are delighted to be making a further one million pages from the British Library's newspaper collections available free to view online in conjunction with our digitisation partners Findmypast. Amongst the new resources available we have released over 200 regional newspaper titles from across the UK. Covering the years 1716-1900 and ranging from the Glasgow Herald and the Newcastle Courant to the Bristol Mercury and the Exeter Flying Post, these publications reflect the rich heritage of the UK’s media landscape and offer new opportunities for everyone to explore our collections from wherever they are the world.”

• Other highlights of the release include: 
• Friend of India and Statesman, 1852-1883 – published in Calcutta, this is another key title to support diverse research, continuing from the 2021 release of Royal Gazette of Jamaica and The Keys
• Porcupine, 1800-1801 – its founder William Cobbett spent time in the United States in the 1790s and leant support to Alexander Hamilton’s Federalists. He was hailed as a ‘great British patriot’ on his return home
• Francis’s Metropolitan News, 1895 – this family title showcased printer R.S. Francis’s ‘new style of illumination’, using blocks of colour to highlight sections
• The Age, 1852-1853 – this title had a reputation for ‘scurrilous and satirical gossip’ about the celebrities of the day
• The Anti-Gallican Monitor, 1811-1825 – this highly divisive newspaper called for the assassination of Napoleon Bonaparte, and provides an intriguing glimpse into attitudes towards France at the height of the Napoleonic Wars
• The Patriot, 1832-1866 – this paper represented itself as a moral and philosophical repository for political thought, with its editor Matthew Campbell Browne hoping to influence the reform of Parliament and an equal Representation of the People.

Originally launched in 2011, Findmypast and the British Library’s partnership set out to digitise the British Library’s entire newspaper collection and open it up to the public as the British Newspaper Archive. Today, that contains over 50 million pages from over a thousand regional, national and specialty titles dating from 2009 all the way back to 1699. Its ever-expanding digital catalogue covers every corner of the British Isles as well as a number of former British territories including Canada, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Barbados and Jamaica. 

(With thanks to Madeleine Gilbert) 

Chris

My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.