Thanks to our partner, the Bessemer City History and Art Society, four new volumes of the Bessemer City Record are now available on our website!

These editions, covering the period from 1990 to 1994, detail local news, including weddings, funerals, and various events. The 1993 newspaper included a special spread on Bessemer City’s Centennial celebrations. The small town turned 100 in March 1993, and the Bessemer City Record printed three “Limited Collector’s Editions” to commemorate the occasion.

These editions were released on March 3, 1993, in anticipation of the March 6th celebrations. The first edition contained some of the regular town news, such as obituary notices, advertisements for a thrift store sale, and fire safety information from the fire department. However, the edition also teases the upcoming Centennial celebration events, such as a time capsule dedication and a large ceremony at Square Park, complete with a 100-shot salute, cake, and contests.

The second edition highlights the historic buildings in Bessemer City and the people who founded them. The paper also delves into Bessemer City’s past, examining important moments like the smallpox outbreak and ghostly encounters. Splashed between the pages are advertisements from local businesses thanking B-City for 100 years of service.

The final edition of the Centennial celebration continues to report on Bessemer City’s landmark events. The paper reports on the weather conditions during the city’s charter, the great fire of 1918, and the founding of the first Black church, among other happenings. Advertisements from Bessemer City institutions are also woven throughout the edition.

Bessemer City was more than just a place to live; it was a home. These three special edition papers illustrate the small town’s strength and beauty, telling stories of resilience and growth.

To view all digitized issues of The Bessemer City Record, please click here.

To learn more about the Bessemer City History and Arts Society, view their contributor page linked here.

To browse more North Carolina newspapers, view our newspaper collection here.

Thanks to our partner, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and funding from the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), 270 issues of The Yancey Journal (Burnsville, N.C.) have been added to our North Carolina Newspapers collection. This batch not only fills in issue gaps from 1980 to 1982, but expands our holdings to include issues from 1983 to 1986.

In the wake of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene to the western part of our state, the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center has made an effort to prioritize partnering with cultural heritage institutions—both new and veteran—and materials related to affected areas. Our latest batch of microfilmed newspapers comes from one of the counties hit hardest by Helene—Yancey.

According to the National Hurricane Center and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, along with over 200 landslides, the highest observed rainfall total—not just in North Carolina, but out of every state hit by Helene—was found in Yancey County. Measuring in at 30.78 inches total, it beat the state with the second highest total (21.66 inches) by nearly 10 inches. At least 1,400 homes were destroyed and 2,300 badly damaged, and utilities not being restored for up to several months. With major roads in and out of the county swept away, the community could only receive supplies either flown in via helicopter or driven in on four wheel drive vehicles. Today, though roads have since been reopened and utilities restored, residents of Yancey County continue to work on rebuilding their community.

To view more materials from Yancey County on DigitalNC here.

To browse more newspapers from across the state, view our newspaper collection here.

Information about Hurricane Helene in Yancey County was taken from the report “National Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Helene,” authored by the National Hurricane Center and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) currently hosted on the Come Hell or High Water community archives project website.

Thanks to our partner, Edgecombe County Memorial Library, as well as funding from the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), a new title has been added to DigitalNC’s ever-growing newspaper collection. Twenty-seven issues of the Edgecombe County Chronicle (Pinetops, N.C.) from the paper’s first year (1966) can now be viewed online. Published weekly, the 1966 issues focus on providing local news along with weekly updates on the war in Vietnam.

To view more materials from Edgecombe County Memorial Library, visit their contributor page here. To view more newspapers from across North Carolina, browse our newspaper collection here.

To learn more about Edgecombe County Memorial Library, visit their website here. Learn more about LSTA’s funding and impact here.

In the wake of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene to the western part of our state, the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center has made an effort to prioritize partnering with cultural heritage institutions—both new and veteran—and materials related to affected areas. Over 250 issues of our newest title, The Avery Herald (Newland, Avery County, N.C.) have been digitized thanks to our newest partner, Avery County Historical Museum.

Located in Newland, North Carolina, the Avery County Historical Museum resides in the former Avery County Jail which was built in 1912. They seek to collect, preserve, and display vital information, photographs, and artifacts about people, events, and places that make up the history of the county and the surrounding areas of the Toe River Valley. For those interested in family genealogies or simply curious about the area’s people and history, the museum has a research room where researchers can view the hundreds of books and papers in their collection—such as the amazing issues of The Avery Herald now on our site.

Ranging from 1940 to 1946, the paper provides a great deal of information about the local community, its residents, and shows how World War II affected their daily lives. There are frequent reminders throughout these issues that stresses the rationing of various materials including paper and metal—like this one (shown above, left) from the June 4, 1942 issue showcasing the direct impact of civilian rationing of brass from decorative lipstick cases to .303 caliber cartridges. Another article (shown above, right), published October 14, 1943, highlights the shift and change in women’s options and opportunities such as joining the armed services, stepping into job positions traditionally seen only as “men’s work” (e.g. factory work), and even fashion. Notably for genealogists and other researchers, the paper published information about the residents in Avery County at the time, as well as the letters, news, and movement of Avery County servicemembers during the war (shown below).

To learn more about the Avery County Historical Museum, visit their contributor page here.

To view more materials from Avery County, including photographs and yearbooks, please click here.

To view more newspapers from across North Carolina, visit our North Carolina Newspapers Collection linked here.

Thanks to funding from a community contributor and nominations from the State Archives of North Carolina and Red Springs Historical Museum we are pleased to announce that nearly 800 new issues of The Red Springs Citizen are now available on our website!

These new papers, ranging from 1950 to 1964, capture life in Robeson County. Red Springs, NC, named for the red pigment in the local mineral springs, became an agricultural hub in the southern part of the state. Farmers planted a variety of fruits and vegetables that were sold both locally and across the United States.

Several issues of The Red Springs Citizen from the summer of 1960 highlight Red Spring’s Produce Center. Located on Raeford Road, the Center hosted farmers who brought in their produce for grading and packaging before shipment. Most of the produce was cucumbers which sold for $1 a bushel.

The Produce Center, part of the Farmers Cooperative of Red Springs, sold its cucumbers to a company in Philadelphia, where they were processed into pickles and sold along the eastern seaboard. The co-op sold 15,428 bushes of cucumbers for a total of $14,332.80 in June alone. The Farmers Cooperative was an extremely successful venture, selling a variety of produce to support local farmers.

To learn more about Red Springs, visit the town website here.

To explore more materials from North Carolina Community Contributors, visit their contributor page here.

To view more newspapers from across the state, visit our North Carolina Newspaper Collection linked here.