GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Grand Rapids Public Library has digitized a significant portion of its local newspaper archives, making them available online for free.
For years, researchers had to visit the library and use microfilm to access old newspapers. While the library is keeping its microfilm collection as a preservation format, the new digital archive offers a more efficient way to access local history.
"It's definitely easier and faster," said Julie Tabberer, Head of the Grand Rapids History Center.
The searchable digital archive includes numerous Grand Rapids newspapers, with some dating back to the late 1800s.
"You can't even necessarily find some of these things when newspapers are just on microfilm and there's no indexing, because you don't know where anything is, and just the hundreds of hours it would take is a big barrier," Tabberer said.
The collection features neighborhood publications that captured detailed local stories.
"Neighborhood newspapers, like the Burton Heights Record, the Creston News, Madison Square Sun, the Southwest Community Alliance. These are newspapers that covered, like, really small details of neighborhoods and communities. So, you can find all sorts of interesting stories in them," Tabberer explained.
She compared these historical newspapers to modern social media due to their detailed coverage of community life.
"These newspapers are, you know, they're kind of the first version of history that gets recorded. They're also kind of like social media, in a sense, because they're so detailed, they'll talk about, just like people taking trips to visit family, like really small things," she said.
Tabberer emphasized the importance of preserving history while ensuring public access to it.
"Having that sense of history is important for the current context and understanding ourselves," she said.
The library plans to continue expanding the digital archive with more local papers to be added later this year.
If you would like to check out Grand Rapids Public Library's local newspaper digital archive, click here
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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