Newspaper archives

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

Are there any newspaper archives online? I've googled without much success and I've never had cause to look for these before so I don't really know what I'm doing!

I have an ancestor arrested and charged by the Met Police in 1946, so is it more likely to have been in a local or national newspaper?

What's the system at the archives in Colindale - do I have to do any kind of search beforehand, or would I just turn up and do the searching on site?

Many thanks for any advice :)

[Merry]

I have an ancestor arrested and charged by the Met Police in 1946, so is it more likely to have been in a local or national newspaper?



Would depend on what he had done, or was charged with, and what other newsworthy stories were around at the same time as to whether the story would reach the national press or not.

I have access to The Times online, but not for any other papers after 1900.

Don't know anything about Colindale - sorry :o

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

Would depend on what he had done, or was charged with, and what other newsworthy stories were around at the same time as to whether the story would reach the national press or not.

I have access to The Times online, but not for any other papers after 1900.

Don't know anything about Colindale - sorry :o

Thanks, Merry. It was bigamy in 1946 (in NW London) :d I don't suppose that would've reached The Times.

The Colindale website is quite daunting - a bit like the National Archives site was the first time I looked at it!

[kiterunner]

The main online archive for local papers in Britain is only for 19th century papers. I think most local papers which have their own online archives only go back a very few years.


I haven't been to Colindale myself, but from what I have heard, you are best to work out exactly what you want before you go there.

[peppie]

http://catalogue.bl.uk/F/?func=file&file_name=login-bl-list

click on the newspaper subset, then you need to put a word in as they are recorded by newspaper name such as if I put in the word Camden, it gives me all the news papers with Camden in the title and the years they have the copies for. Then it's a case of going up there and ordering the papers, which you'll get either the papers themselves in a huge book or microfilm. Slowly they are moving all the papers up to Boston spa but microfilms will end up being available in the British library at Kings Cross

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

Thanks, KR and Peppie :)

I'm not holding out much hope but at least I now know a little bit more about old newspapers, thank you all.

[Phoenix]

it might be easier to find out the relevant local archive and contact them: they will often have local newspapers. Do you have an exact date, so they could do a look up, or is it a question of trawling?

I imagine that bigamy in 1946 would not have been so unusual as it might have been in 1936 or even 1956, but I should think it would still rate a mention.

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

it might be easier to find out the relevant local archive and contact them: they will often have local newspapers. Do you have an exact date, so they could do a look up, or is it a question of trawling?

I imagine that bigamy in 1946 would not have been so unusual as it might have been in 1936 or even 1956, but I should think it would still rate a mention.

Thanks, Phoenix. Yes, I've got the exact date of his appearance at the local Magistrates' Court and it says that he will then be committed to take trial at the Central Criminal Sessions commencing September 1946.

[Merry]

to take trial at the Central Criminal Sessions commencing September 1946.

Isn't that The Old Bailey?????

I just looked in The Times for the court records but there doesn't seem to be a session in Sept, only in November (inc 15 bigamy cases!)

[Merry]

I've found a bit about the Sept Sessions now. It would seem a big murder trial dominated the newspapers so lesser crimes didn't get a mention in Sept 1946. Neville Heath murdered two women (one near where I live in Bournemouth, so that's probably why I've heard of him) and his trial took a lot of paper columns! He was hanged in the November.

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

I've found a bit about the Sept Sessions now. It would seem a big murder trial dominated the newspapers so lesser crimes didn't get a mention in Sept 1946. Neville Heath murdered two women (one near where I live in Bournemouth, so that's probably why I've heard of him) and his trial took a lot of paper columns! He was hanged in the November.

Just my luck :d Thanks for looking, Merry, much appreciated :)

[peppie]

Ahhh Intersting, you'll have to go to kew again, they should have the court records for that year ;)

[Mandy in Wiltshire]

Ahhh Intersting, you'll have to go to kew again, they should have the court records for that year ;)

Oh fab Peppie, many thanks :)