A January 1958 article showing and detailing events in a 1957 retrospective

Nearly a dozen years and over 14,000 pages of the Carteret County News-Times have been newly added to DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, the Carteret County Public Libraries. While previously covering from May 1948 to March 1949, DigitalNC now covers from May 1948 to January 1960. Based out of Morehead City, this newspaper covers Carteret County and joins the Pine Knoll Shores, another newspaper that services Carteret County.

An article in the Carteret County News-Times, dated January 13, 1950

The News-Times is a weekly and semi-weekly newspaper that offers mostly local headlines, although some are of national importance. Many are naturally about the North Carolina coast and maritime news, like the article to the right. In early 1950, scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution released glass bottles into the ocean off the coast, in order to test the ocean’s drift due to winds or currents. The bottles included notes that had a return address to the institute on them, and if the notes were returned, the sender received 50 cents back for their help.

Having this massive increase in pages from the News-Times helps gain knowledge and increase representation of coastal North Carolina cities in our collection. To browse through other materials from the Carteret County Public Libraries, take a look at their partner page, or visit their website.

Happy New Years wishes from the News-Record as 1977 turned into 1978

Twelve years and over 7200 pages of the News-Record have been added to DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, the Madison County Public Library. The collection had previously covered from 1912 to 1976 sporadically – these new pages cover from 1976 to 1988, adding over 650 issues to our holdings. Based out of Marshall, the News-Record is a weekly newspaper that covers Marshall, Mars Hill, and the rest of Madison County.

Many news articles found in the News-Record dealt with local municipal issues, political events, or updates for local sports teams. In the snippet on the right, a September 1979 article announced to local residents how cable television would be coming to Marshall and Mars Hill later that fall. While the wiring and antennas were largely in place for the town, the Clearview Cable Company still required approval to lay wiring across railroad tracks in Marshall. At the time, the monthly charge for cable was $7.75, and that gave residents 12 channels.

To browse through other materials from the Madison County Public Library, check out their partner page, or visit the Madison County Public Library website.

New issues of The Duplin Times Progress Sentinel dating from 1962-1985 are now available on DigitalNC courtesy of Duplin County Library. These join previously digitized issues from 1935-1961. The Duplin Times Progress Sentinel is a weekly newspaper that serves Duplin County and surrounding areas including southern Lenoir County. Established in 1935, The Duplin Times Progress Sentinel, now called The Duplin Times, currently has offices in Kenansville, Albertson, Beulaville, Deep Run, Pink Hill and Warsaw, and continues to be available in print at these locations as well as online on a weekly basis.

The current website of The Duplin Times states “county news is our specialty, covering courthouse, commissioners, school board and general news throughout Duplin County.” This holds true for the 1962-1985 issues as well. These issues primarily cover local politics, civic issues, and events. Also included in the newly digitized issues is a weekly editorial column entitled “Son of a Gun” by Duplin local Joe Lanier. Son of a Gun colorfully covers a wide range of topics such as motel prices, advertising practices, and violence on TV.

To browse through digitized issues of  The Duplin Times Progress Sentinel, click here. You can also visit the Duplin Times current website to learn more about the paper in its current form. To see more materials from our partner, Duplin County Library, visit their DigitalNC partner page or take a look at their website.

Last summer we hosted students from a middle school in Wilmington who did extensive research on the 1898 riots in Wilmington.  They came along with staff from the Cape Fear Museum, who brought the issues of the Wilmington Daily Record the museum held.  We scanned those newspapers on site, along with clippings from papers around the state and country with articles about the riots.  To learn more about their visit, read the post we did about it during the summer during the summer here.

This fall, as a continuing part of our work with this group, we were pleased to make available 16 newspapers published in Wilmington during the 19th century, ranging in dates from 1803 to 1901.  Some of the papers have several years of content available and several have just an issue or two.  But together, they paint a rich picture of what life in Wilmington looked like during the 1800s and the wide variety of political viewpoints that were held in the city, and North Carolina as a whole.  The papers shed light on a port town that was instrumental in the Civil War and in the politics of Reconstruction afterwards, which culminated in the infamous riots of 1898. 

The news in Wilmington, as told in the Cape Fear Herald, published on Nov. 4, 1803

The sixteen papers now available are: 

The Cape Fear Herald 
The True Republican or American Whig 
The Liberalist and Wilmington Reporter 
Wilmington Advertiser and
Merchants’ and Farmers’ Gazette 
Our Rights 
Sunday Morning Mail 
The New Era 
The Wilmington Gazette 
The Wilmington Post 
The Evening Post 
The Daily Review 
The Weekly Star 
The Wilmington Democrat 
The New South
The Wilmington Dispatch 

View other newspapers on DigitalNC here. 

A headline from the February 9, 1956 issue.

Issues of the Waynesville Mountaineer newspaper from 1952-1956 are now available on DigitalNC. These issues were provided by our partner, Haywood County Public Library, and join previously digitized issues dating back to 1925. During the 1950s, the Waynesville Mountaineer was published twice a week–on Mondays and Thursdays, using the tagline “All the news most of the time–The most news all the time.”

A mountain view from the August 16, 1954 issue.

This paper served individuals in and around Waynesville, North Carolina. Coverage was mainly focused on local news and included stories on politics, economic forecasts, events, clubs, and more. Because of Waynesville’s proximity to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the newspaper also included a dedicated section titled “Information for Visitors” that specifically addressed the needs of tourists and included sightseeing tips and information on Park happenings.

To browse through issues of the Waynesville Mountaineer, click here. To see more materials from Haywood County Public Library, visit their DigitalNC partner page, or take a look at their website.

An advertisement from the September 19, 1916 issue.

Two more years of the Washington Daily News from 1915-1916 are now online, joining previously digitized issues from 1909-1914. These issues were provided by our partner, the George H. and Laura E. Brown Library. The Washington Daily News is a newspaper serving Washington, North Carolina, a small city located in Beaufort County, North Carolina. The paper was started in 1909 and exists today under the same name.

An interesting pronouncement in the February 8, 1916 issue.

The newly digitized issues were published six days a week and covered events of  both local and national importance. Included are stories about the local and national economy, politics, notable events, businesses advertisements, town gossip, and commentary on farming and industry around Washington, North Carolina. The paper also provided Washingtonians almost daily updates about World War I which was raging abroad.

To browse through all the digitized issues of the Washington Daily News, click here. To see more materials from the George H. and Laura E. Brown Library, visit their DigitalNC partner page, or take a look at their website.

An article updating Washington residents about the war front in the September 26, 1916 issue.

A front page from August 1946. News included veterans’ furlough pay, farm credit bills in Congress, and the 20th anniversary of sound in movies

Twenty more years and almost 7000 pages of the Alamance Gleaner have been added to DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, the Alamance County Public Libraries. Previously, issues of the Gleaner only covered from 1875-1882 and 1911 to 1926, but DigitalNC now includes January 1927 to January 1947. Based out of Alamance County, the Gleaner was published from 1875 through 1956, and it joins other Alamance County newspapers, including the Mebane Leader and the Burlington Twice-A-Week Dispatch.

A July 1927 article about a highway that would eventually become Route 66

The Gleaner was a weekly newspaper based out of Graham that offered local news, national news, international news, and short stories. One story that the Gleaner wrote about in 1927 was a plan to create a highway from Chicago to Los Angeles, thought of as a “Main Street of America”, a stretch that would eventually become Route 66. As time went on, the Gleaner also came to include a comics section, quizzes, and timely updates from the different campaigns in World War II.

With this new increase in pages from the Alamance Gleaner, DigitalNC becomes that much closer to having the entire published history of the newspaper in our collection. To browse other materials from Alamance County, take a look at their partner page, or visit their website.

Eight more years and over 4300 new pages of the Brevard News have been digitized and added to DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, the Transylvania County Library. Previously, issues of the Brevard News only covered from 1917 to 1923, but DigitalNC now includes January 1924 through December 1932. This means that DigitalNC now contains digitized versions of the entire run of Brevard News, from its beginning to when it folded in 1932. It joins fellow Transylvania county newspapers the Sylvan Valley News, The Echo, and The Transylvania Times.

A snippet from a December 1927 article advertising Santa Claus coming to Brevard

In February 1930, farm agents warned local farmers not to focus only on tobacco for their sole income

Much of the articles cover local news, including residents of note and local politicians, events that were happening at the time, and advice for farmers in the area. For example, in early 1930, the Brevard Banking Company announced it would help fund 50 farmers to plant one acre of tobacco each in order to bring money into Transylvania County, like it did to nearby Madison County. However, local farm agents cautioned farmers not to get too carried away with profitable tobacco farming, and to focus on grains and other existing crops first.

To browse through other materials from the Transylvania County Library, take a look at their partner page, or check out their website.