How to search old local newspapers

From market towns to industrial cities, local newspapers have marked the rhythm of daily life across Britain for centuries. Today, old local newspapers are a valuable resource, offering a detailed window into the past and sometimes even helping us trace our ancestors' life stories. 

School trophies. Community fundraisers. Local celebrities and all manner of eccentric stories. While genealogy records can pin down the when and where of your relatives' lives, old newspapers capture the everyday moments that evaded the records. 

For those interested in the history of a particular place or event, local and national newspapers offer unparalleled contemporary insight. You can make fascinating discoveries, even if your ancestor didn't make headlines.  

Family history is about delving deeper into your roots and uncovering the twists and turns of your family's story, from marriages to migrations.  

While censuses and birth, marriage and death (BMD) records may be the first port of call when building your family tree, historical newspapers are an essential resource for truly understanding your ancestors' lives. Quotes from the time, eyewitness accounts and even photographs; news clippings add the colour and context that traditional records may miss. 

National versus local newspapers  

National publications like the Daily Herald and the Sunday Mirror provided news to homes up and down the country. They typically reflect the wider talking points of the era, from sports results to criminal trials.  

Local newspapers, in contrast, reflect a smaller community. The Liverpool Daily Post, for example, served (and was created by) the people of Liverpool. Local titles reflect a community's concerns and priorities; today, digitised local newspapers offer insight into how these things shifted over the years.  

A growing bank of digitised newspapers is available to search online. In partnership with the British Library, Findmypast has published over 98 million pages, which you can search here. In just a few steps, you can unearth meaningful stories from years gone by. 

1. Search by name or keyword. Starting with what you know, perform a simple search for a person's name or a relevant keyword.  
2. Use filters to narrow down your results - on Findmypast, you can specify a date range, location, individual newspaper titles and more. By refining your search, you'll begin to zero in on the articles you're looking for.  
3. Save and share your findings using Findmypast's Collections tool. Use the built-in clipping tool to snip articles or images, then add them to a new or existing Collection to create a unique compilation. From there, you can add further clippings and share your Collection with others.  

Can I search Findmypast's newspapers for free? 

You don't need to pay an upfront fee to access Findmypast's newspaper archive. Over 45 million articles - from hundreds of local news titles - are free to view.  

Findmypast also makes all pages from this day in history free to access, so you can glimpse the talking points and big issues of the day, in years gone by.  

To enjoy full access to Findmypast's newspapers, you can take out a free trial.