Three newspapers from Dunn, North Carolina are now available online. All three were recommended for digitization by the Harnett County Public Library.
The Central Times was a weekly newspaper published in the first half of the 1890s. It’s main focus were events happening in Dunn and the wider Harnett County area, although national and world events were also well covered in it’s pages. The issues available in DigitalNC span 1891-1895.
The County Union was also a weekly publication in Dunn, NC, which replaced The Central Times. However, while the Times seemed to have a fairly even-handed take on events, the County Union was definitely a Democratic party supporting publication. Big topics in the paper include the Gold vs. Free Silver debates of the 1896 Presidential election, as well as the push for a Democratic takeover of the North Carolina government in 1898. The issues of the County Union available in DigitalNC cover 1895-1899.
As a result of the win by the Democrats in the 1900 election in North Carolina, the County Union changed it’s name to The Democratic Banner in 1901. Continuing to print local and state news with a partisan slant, the paper covers the start of the twentieth century in North Carolina and the strong shift in politics in the state as Governor Aycock took charge. Topics including prohibition support, anti-women’s suffrage editorials, and segregation becoming increasing institutionalized are all topics of discussion. Issues covering 1901-1902 are included in DigitalNC.
To view more newspapers from across North Carolina, visit DigitalNC‘s North Carolina Newspapers Collection.