Digitizing and sharing historical local newspapers is a top priority for communities of all sizes around Wisconsin. Local newspapers are an important source of community history, provide information for researchers, and are a key resource for people working on genealogy and family history. The Historical and Local Digital Collections Committee connects WPLC member libraries to resources and support to plan for and complete the important work of digitizing and sharing their historical newspapers.
Get Situated with Newspaper Resources
All Things Newspapers Resources Document - start here to learn about options for digitizing historical newspapers, and for ways to access existing collections of digitized Wisconsin newspapers.
Wisconsin Historical Society List of Wisconsin Newspapers - the WHS maintains a list of historical Wisconsin newspapers and where to find them, whether in the Society's collection or elsewhere.
Wisconsin Historical Society Microfilm Digitization Lab - WPLC recommends using WHS' Microfilm Digitization Lab for newspaper digitization projects (see Lab webpage for latest service updates).
Preservation Measures for Newspapers - guidelines published by the Library of Congress.
About the Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers & the WPLC Historical Wisconsin Newspapers Project
Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers - provides digital access to some of Wisconsin's historical newspapers. All the historical newspaper content contributed to the Archive by Wisconsin libraries between 2015 and 2023 is fully searchable through BadgerLink -- over 600,000 pages from 44 different titles in 28 Wisconsin communities. Anyone with a Wisconsin library card can explore these historical newspapers by title, city, county or date, and more than 250 daily and weekly Wisconsin newspapers from 2005 to 90 days ago. As of December 2023, the WPLC Historical Wisconsin Newspapers Project has concluded, with no plans to coordinate the addition of further titles to the archive.
Additional Digitization Project Resources
Looking for resources or tools to digitize local history materials beyond newspapers? Here are some additional resources vetted by WPLC committee members.
Start Here:
- Digital Readiness Toolkit (Recollection Wisconsin)
Learn More:
- OCLC Digital Stewardship Training
- External Digitization Standards (Society of American Archivists)
QUESTIONS?
Please email wplc-info@wils.org with any questions about the resources listed on this page.