05 November 2018

Pre-famine Irish Newspapers Online

The British Newspaper Archive (BNA) has been placing emphasis on adding digitized Irish papers to its collection in recent months. While most content is for the last half of the 19th century, then the first of the 20th, earlier years are not overlooked.
As of early November the papers with most pre-famine content are for Northern Ireland: Northern Whig (1832-1919, 1921-1957); Belfast News-Letter (1828-1951, 1954-1956); Londonderry Sentinel (1829-1848, 1851-1852, 1854, 1856-1958); Derry Journal (1825, 1835-1885, 1891-1924, 1926-1942, 1950-1955); Belfast Commercial Chronicle (1805-1813, 1816-1817, 1819-1822, 1825-1829, 1831-1847, 1853-1855); Newry Telegraph (1829-1871); Enniskillen Chronicle and Erne Packet (1813, 1824-1880, 1882, 1884-1893).
For the Republic of Ireland: Freeman's Journal (1820-1821, 1830-1833, 1837-1924); Saunders's News-Letter (1773-1787, 1789, 1792-1797, 1799, 1802-1811, 1813-1815, 1817-1830, 1832, 1835-1837, 1839, 1843-1844, 1846, 1853-1871); Dublin Evening Mail (1824,1826-1828,1831,1833,1838, 1840-1871,1876-1907); Southern Reporter and Cork Commercial Courier (1823, 1825-1870); Drogheda Journal, or Meath & Louth Advertiser (1823-1840).
There are several others with scattered pre-famine issues, too many to list. Check them out at www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/.
Another source, some covering many of the same publications is the Irish Newspaper Archives at www.irishnewsarchive.com/.
You are more likely to find items of interest for a townland or parish than an individual.
For those who fled to Liverpool the BNA has the Liverpool Mail (1836-1837, 1839-1858, 1860-1868, 1870-1874, 1877, 1880) and Liverpool Mercury (1811-1835, 1837-1871, 1873-1897, 1899-1900).


1 comment:

Unknown said...

Thanks, John. My ancestors emigrated two decades before the famine, so I'll be searching for evidence of them in their homeland.