19th Century British Library Newspapers

"19th Century BL Newspapers Online gives us an invaluable new perspective on the way Victorian Britain came to understand itself as a community of citizens, consumers and commentators. It is hard to imagine any researcher with nineteenth-century interests to whom it does not offer important insights on their subject: and it is dangerously addictive!"  Professor Arthur Burns, Kings College London

Developed in partnership with the British Library and JISC, 19th Century British Library Newspapers offers full runs of national, regional and local 19th century British newspapers, taken directly from the extensive holdings of the British Library. The content includes 48 titles, totaling approximately 2.2 million pages, selected to reflect the social and political developments of the times in which they were published.

The papers have been carefully selected by an editorial board from the British Library whose purpose was to provide a broad yet detailed view of British life in the 19th century; from business to sport, from politics to entertainment and the arts. The collection is made up of daily and weekly publications and reflects Britain’s growing role as a superpower in the 19th century world.

19th Century British Library Newspapers enables users to search material previously only available in London-based reading rooms. Employing the latest imaging techniques, the collection offers its users highly illustrated materials on topics as diverse as business and sport, politics and entertainment. The collection will focus on London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism.

IHR review March 2009

19th Century British Library Newspapers features:
  • London national newspapers
  • English regional newspapers
  • Home country newspapers from Scotland, Wales and North Ireland
  • Titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism
  • Bibliographic headnotes
  • Contextual essays regarding the role of newspapers in the Victorian age
  • A chronological overview
  • Many illustrations with examples of early photograpy
  • Newspapers selected on the basis of their importance
  • Capability to cross-search 17th and 18th Century Burney Collection
Click here for a title list to Part I

Coming Soon in 2010: BL Newspapers Part 2

22 additional 19th century newspaper titles to widen and deepen the range of newspapers available online for regions and towns/ cities including Norwich, Bradford, Leicester, Sheffield and York.

Click here for a title list to Part 2

Contact us for more details

19th Century British Library Newspapers and 17th & 18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers are available to all Further and Higher Education UK institutions free of charge thanks to funding from JISC as part of its digitization programme. To sign up and access these unique resources please visit  http://www.jisc-collections.ac.uk/19thblib and http://www.jisc-collections.ac.uk/catalogue/burney and download, complete and return the license agreement. The collections will then be added to your institution's library holdings allowing academics and students to search a cross section of newspapers and enhance research into the society, culture and history of the UK between 1700-1900.

If you are outside the UK to request a trial or pricing for either of these collections contact emea.marketing@cengage.com