British Newspaper Archive goes live on Genes Reunited

The following is from Genes Reunited and BrightSolid.

BRITISH NEWSPAPER ARCHIVE GOES LIVE ON GENES REUNITED

. Previously hard-to-reach material now available
. Over 4 million fully-searchable pages of historical newspapers
. Archives feature over 65 million stories
. 8,000 pages added everyday

The British Newspaper Archive - recently launched to the public - has today been made available through leading family history website genesreunited.co.uk, transforming how people research the past.  Members will be able to search for newspaper articles about their ancestors or the areas where they have lived, adding a whole new dimension to family history research.

The newspaper archive, first launched to the public on the 29th November 2011, currently hosts over 4 million pages from more than 200 regional newspaper titles (UK and Ireland), spanning the 18th and 19th centuries, and is fully searchable.  8,000 pages are added every day, making this an invaluable resource for family historians throughout the UK.

The newspapers illustrate the stories, issues, anxieties and obsessions of 19th century Britain and Ireland, also the parallels between the 19th century and present day.  The archive includes phenomenally detailed and elaborately illustrated reports of the Great Exhibition of 1851, highlighting Victorian creativity and enterprise, as well as the complaints registered about strikes, delays and the effect on trade in the capital during the Exhibition's run. Also included are stories on infamous murder trials, and men, women and children transported to the other side of the world for minor crimes; prominent illustrations and adverts, flagging the latest fashion to cure-alls for illnesses - all illuminating local history on an unprecedented level.

Rhoda Breakell, Head of Genesreunited.co.uk, commented: "We are really excited to be able to host the British Newspaper Archive on genesreunited.co.uk following its huge success since launching earlier this year.  Offering this service to our members means that the nation's memories are not only kept alive online, but members can find stories about their ancestors or look up the area they lived in at the touch of a button.  Material that was previously hard to reach because of where it was kept can now be in front of you within minutes. It's a fantastic new resource for looking into the history of your family.

"Our members are undoubtedly going to unearth some special findings and we're really interested in hearing about them via the community forum or message board. Whether it is an unusual discovery about their ancestors or area they lived in, or the most amusing and scandalous headlines, tell us about it!"

Genes Reunited Platinum members can add the British Newspaper Archive to their current subscription for £39.95.


Genes Reunited is owned by online publishers brightsolid.  brightsolid was chosen by the British Library as the partner for this project due to its track record on projects such as the digitisation of the 1911 census in partnership with The National Archives.

Genes Reunited was launched in 2003 as a sister-site to the Internet phenomenon Friends Reunited. Since then it has grown to become the UK's largest genealogy website.

It marked a revolution in genealogy and ancestry by combining them with Internet social-networking. Members are able to build their family tree by posting it on the site and investigating which ancestors they share with other members. They can also search historical records such as census, birth, death, marriage and military records.

Genes Reunited has over 12 million members and over 780 million names listed. One new name is added to the site every single second.