Searching Newspapers

Some research projects require searching newspapers, either current or historical. Trent subscribes to current newspapers in print, on microfilm, or online. Historical newspapers are usually on microfilm.

Finding articles within those newspapers, and gaining access to the articles, may require using more than one resource.

Access to Current Newspapers

While many newspapers offer limited online access through a website, only paying subscribers have access to all the articles online. Trent has purchased online access for the titles listed under "Online" . Trent also subscribes to indexes that cover some newspapers and provide the full text of articles (see the chart below).

Popular Current Newspapers at Trent Library

Access to Historical Newspapers

The Trent Library also keeps many historical newspapers on microfilm. These can be found by searching TOPCAT for the title of a particular newspaper, or checking our list of newspapers on microfilm.

The Boston news-letter (Boston, Mass. : 1704-1776) is available on microfilm. This is of special interest to those studying Piracy.

Online:
London Times: The Times Digital Archive 1785-1985.
Globe and Mail: Canada's Heritage from 1844 - The Globe and Mail.
17th and 18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers : British historical newspapers.
Chronicling America : U.S. site providing access to information about historic newspapers and select digitized newspaper pages (public site).

Libris Canadiana offers historical indexing to select Canadian newspapers and journals, including the Finanacial Post (1907-1948) and Monetary Times (1867-1929).

The Trent University Archives also maintains a list of historical newspapers available in the Archives.

Access to International Newspapers

Trent Library is a member of The Center for Research Libraries (CRL). Resources can be borrowed through Trent's Interlibrary Loans department (RACER). The Center’s resources include:

• 6,500 international newspapers, many dating to the 1700s--the largest collection of circulating newspapers in North America
• 4,500 U.S. newspapers, many dating to the colonial era, including 2,000 ethnic titles.

Search the CRL catalogue to find titles you need, then order them through RACER.

Finding the Articles Using Indexes

Access to a newspaper isn't much help if you don't know which dates/pages have the articles you need. To find out what articles were published in these newspapers, use an index. An index allows you to look up your topic or author and find citations to articles. If a newspaper is available online, it is usually searchable, so it acts as both an index and full text.

Canadian

There is one Canadian newspaper index available to Trent: Canadian Newsstand covers 20 major Canadian newspapers in full text.

Some Canadian newspapers are included in these general indexes:

• CPI.Q (Canadian)
• CBCA (Canadian)
• Academic Search Elite
• Academic OneFile
• AltPress Watch
• EBSCO Business Databases
• General OneFile

Older Canadian newspapers can be searched using the Canadian Periodical Index, a print (hard-copy) resource in the Reference Collection. This index goes back to the 1920s. There is some sporadic coverage of Canadian newspapers in some indexes in the Reference collection at AI 3 .C324.

American

The National Newspaper Index provides indexing and abstracts for five major American newspapers:

• Christian Science Monitor: 1980 - current
• Los Angeles Times: 1982 - current
• New York Times: 1980 - current
  • New York Times Book Review: 1980 - current
  • New York Times Magazine: 1978 - current
• Wall Street Journal Eastern Edition: 2004 - current
  • Wall Street Journal Western Edition: 1980 - March 2004
• Washington Post: 1980 - current

This database does NOT include the full text of the papers. Of these, Trent has the New York Times (and Book Review) - on microfilm.

Some American newspapers are included in these general indexes:

• Academic Search Elite
• Academic OneFile
• AltPress Watch
• EBSCO Business Databases

Other Options

The Peterborough Public Library provides access to other Canadian and international newspapers that Trent does not carry. Peterborough residents may obtain a library card by applying in person with proof of residency. Access to online resources is available from home once you have a card.

Most newspapers have websites which provide limited access to the content - search for them on the web.