Index to the Early American Newspaper Microfilm Collection
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University of Connecticut Index to the Early American Newspaper Microfilm Collection in the Homer Babbidge Library Compiled by Carole Dyal and Laura Raccagni Designed & Formatted by Meredith Petersons December 2003 [Revised March 2006] Research and Information Services Homer Babbidge Library • University of Connecticut Preface Index to the Early American Newspaper Microfilm Collection No history of a town or city can be written without recourse to its newspapers. Clarence S. Brigham The index that follows identifies the Early American Newspapers from the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries that have been preserved on microfilm for users of the Homer Babbidge Library. The collection incorporates newspapers from Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia. The index arranges the newspapers by state, then by city or town, and finally by principal title. The dates of library holdings are noted for each. During these decades, newspapers rarely survived more than a few short years; and their titles changed several times during their lifespan. In order to accurately record the birth and death, title and location changes for the newspapers included in the Early American Newspapers Collection, the compilers viewed the microfilm for each title and consulted Clarence S. Brigham’s invaluable History and Bibliography of American Newspapers. Brigham reports that the mortality of newspapers before 1821 is notable. “Over half of 2120 papers in this period—to be exact, 1118 papers—expired before they had reached two years of existence; 1002 papers lived from two to four years; 541 from five to nine years; 302 from ten to nineteen years; 106 from twenty to twenty-nine years; 34 from thirty to thirty-nine years; 15 from forty to forty-nine years; and 10 from fifty to eighty seven years" (xii). Of those 10 that survived over fifty years, three were published in Connecticut: the Connecticut Gazette (New London, 1763 to 1820), the Connecticut Courant (Hartford, 1764 to 1820), and the Connecticut Journal (New Haven, 1767 to 1820). All three of these titles are available in the Babbidge collection. Most American newspapers from this period were weeklies, printed on folio or crown sheets; “that is, they had four pages, each measuring about 11 x 17 or 10 x 15 inches” (Mott, 43). Though circulations were small by modern standards, ranging from a few hundred to at most a few thousand, each copy was likely to be shared by many readers, either among individuals or at places of gathering such as coffee houses or taverns. Finally, a word on content: news from England and Europe (mostly having to do with politics and wars) was featured prominently, freely adapted from papers carried overseas by merchants and settlers. And though political actions and military events predominated, “accidents, wrecks, fires, storms, agricultural yields, ‘remarkables' and monstrosities, gaol breaks, epidemics and medical achievements, and crime news were all frequent” (Mott, 101). -ii- Then as now, advertising announcements “represented the chief profit margin in the newspaper business.” These varied in length from “two or three lines to a column or more.” Prominent were notices of runaways—slaves, apprentices, and bondservants (Mott, 56). Works Cited: Brigham, Clarence S. History and Bibliography of American Newspapers, 1690 – 1820. Worcester: American Antiquarian Society, 1947. Babbidge Library / Level 1 / Ref. Z 6951 B86 Mott, Frank Luther. American Journalism: a history of newspapers in the United States through 250 years, 1690 to 1940. New York: McMillan, 1947. Babbidge Library / Level 4 / PN 4855 M63 Scott E. Kennedy • November 2003 Area Head Research & Information Services University of Connecticut Libraries -iii- Table of Contents Connecticut Hartford ....................................................................................... pages 1 and 2 Litchfield ..................................................................................... pages 2 and 3 Middletown.............................................................................................. page 3 New Haven ............................................................................................. page 3 New London............................................................................................ page 3 Norwich ................................................................................................... page 4 Stonington .............................................................................................. page 4 Windham................................................................................................. page 4 Delaware Wilmington .............................................................................................. page 5 District of Columbia Georgetown ............................................................................................ page 5 Washington ............................................................................................. page 5 Georgia Milledgeville ............................................................................................ page 5 Savannah ............................................................................................... page 5 Maine Portland .................................................................................................. page 6 Massachusetts Boston .......................................................................................... pages 6 – 10 Cambridge ............................................................................................ page 10 Newburyport ......................................................................................... page 10 Northampton ......................................................................................... page 10 Pittsfield ................................................................................................ page 11 Salem ................................................................................................... page 11 Stockbridge ........................................................................................... page 11 Worcester ............................................................................................. page 12 New Hampshire Concord ................................................................................................ page 13 Portsmouth ........................................................................................... page 13 -iv- New York Albany ................................................................................................... page 14 New York .............................................................................................. page 14 North Carolina Newbern ............................................................................................... page 15 Ohio Chillicothe ............................................................................................. page 15 Pennsylvania Philadelphia .......................................................................................... page 15 Rhode Island Newport ................................................................................................ page 16 Providence ............................................................................................ page 16 South Carolina Charleston ............................................................................................ page 17 Vermont Bennington ........................................................................................... page 17 Virginia Leesburg ............................................................................................... page 18 Richmond.............................................................................................. page 18 -v- Index to the Early American Newspaper Microfilm Collection in the Homer Babbidge Library, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT. About the Microfilm Collection • Microfilm reels are shelved together under the collection title, Early American Newspapers, in the Babbidge Microform Research Collections on Level 3. • Within the Early American Newspapers Collection, microfilm reels are arranged first by place of publication (state and city or town) then alphabetically by newspaper title. About the Index • Newspapers are arranged first by place of publication (state and city or town), then alphabetically by title. • Library holdings (months, days, and years) are listed for each title in the Collection. • Exceptions to the norm are noted for the following: Titles filmed out of alphabetical order Titles filmed out of location sequence More than one newspaper title filmed on the same reel Early American newspapers filmed in the American Periodical Series Collection, 1800- 1850. The APS Collection is located in the Babbidge Microform Research Collections, Level 3. Early American newspapers filmed in the Harbottle Dorr Collection of Annotated Massachusetts Newspapers. The Harbottle Dorr Collection is located in the Babbidge Microform Research Collections, Level 3. CONNECTICUT Hartford, CT American Mercury ....................................................................... Jul. 12, 1784 – Dec. 26, 1820 Connecticut Courant ................................................................... Oct. 29, 1764 – Dec. 30, 1837 Index to Connecticut News in the Connecticut Courant*