University Libraries Announce Acquisition of the Times of London Digital Archive

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Headlines from The Times

The Times Digital Archive, 1785-2008, a recent database addition to the University Libraries' catalog, allows readers to explore every story, illustration, advertisement, obituary, marriage, and birth announcement in this important daily paper — back to the 18th century.

Celebrating U.S. Constitution Day tomorrow? Users can read the reaction to and coverage of the constitutional debates in the Times, though the full report of the ratification did not appear in the Times until November 1, 1787. News moved at a much slower pace than in the age of Twitter.

Those reading up on Thursday’s vote for Scottish Independence will note that while Times coverage doesn't quite extend back to the union in 1707, there is extensive coverage on the debates over union and devolution, including the growing nationalist movement and the impact of North Sea Oil in the 1970s and 1980s. For contemporary coverage of the independence issue, visit Lexis Nexis Academic, which offers the full text of the Times back to 1985 and up to the current day's issue.

Users can browse the Times Digital Archive by date to find reporting on specific events, or search across the full text for words in the story text. Users can also limit searches to “type of article,” including advertising, editorials, features, reviews, announcements, and legal, social, political, or entertainment news.

TheTimes Digital Archive will take readers to the origins of World War I, on the march for Indian Independence, debating the abolition of the slave trade or the enfranchisement of women, chasing Napoleon's navy across the globe, exploring the Antarctic with Shackleton and Scott, seeking the sources of the Nile with Burton and Speke, or just on the hunt for the first robin of spring.