BadgerLink 

This online database has 239 Wisconsin newspapers dating from 2005 to the present. In this collection, the last 90 days will not be online. THERE IS ALSO AN OPTION TO SEARCH HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS for 27 Wisconsin newspapers. You need a library card from a participating Wisconsin library to use this database or a Wisconsin zip code. Newspaper pages can be downloaded as PDF files at no charge. 

A list of all the Wisconsin newspapers available at BadgerLink from 2005 is HERE 

Older issues (before 2005) of the Weekly Home News (Spring Green, WI) are not online. To read older issues, go to the Wisconsin Historical Society to read newspapers on microfilm (see directions elsewhere on this page) or read the Weekly Home News at the public library in Spring Green. 

Login at the Badger Link website with a Wisconsin library card number or zip code

1. Go here: http://badgerlink.dpi.wi.gov/login 

2. Choose "Wisconsin" and enter a zip code - OR - choose a library or school and enter a library barcode number

3. Click "Login"

NOTE: After a short time of inactivity, you will be logged out and will have to log back in! Logging back in might take you to the database you last looked at with seemingly no way to get back to the main database list at Badger Link!! Clearing browser cookies did not fix it! The people at BadgerLink suggested this: If you received a "Data ID & Term Parameters are empty" error message, please try the following. Save any open work in your browser and then clear your browser's cookies and cache. Close all browser windows. Reopen your browser and navigate back to your library website, school website, or the BadgerLink website. Click the link to access the resource again and follow any prompts to log in. They suggest reading HOW TO CLEAR COOKIES: https://its.uiowa.edu/support/article/719  Good luck - none of their suggestions worked for me! Using a different browser did not work! 

There are a lot of databases at Badger Link. Some of the most interesting are three named below (details about these are further down this page): 

• Newspapers.com - Library Edition World Collection (limited edition)

• Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers

• Newspaper Source Plus

Newspapers.com - Library Edition World Collection (FREE!)

Through BadgerLink using a WI zip code or WI library card, this database is a limited Newspapers.com free subscription that includes mostly historical newspapers from 1700s to 2000s. This is NOT the same as NewspaperArchive.com (more about that is below).
Also see further below for info about the paid version of Newspapers.com

Some newspapers of interest that are through the library free edition: 

1. Log into Badgerlink http://badgerlink.dpi.wi.gov/login 

2. Choose "Wisconsin" and enter a zip code - OR - choose a library or school and enter a library barcode number

3. Click "Login"

4. After logging in, click the letter "N" to jump to the databases beginning with N

5. Click "Newspapers.com Library Edition - World Collection" which goes here: (https://newspaperslibrary.proquest.com/)
   or here: https://www.wiscat.net/ext/validateglobal.php?  The page looks like the paid version of Newspapers.com. 

6. Search for a name, date, and place as desired

7. If something of interest is found, center click it to open in a new browser tab. 

8. If you are not signed into a Newspapers.com account and when starting to "clip" something, you may see a pop-up window asking you to register with World Collection Archive. You have a choice to register with email, continue with Ancestry.com, or sign into your current World Collection Archive account. Once logged in, you can clip articles. The clippings are saved to your Clippings page. 

9. Another option that didn't require signing in was to click the "Print/Download" button. You can then download the entire page or select an area to download (jpeg or pdf). 

• You can browse or search for newspapers: https://www.newspapers.com/browse/    
  WISCONSIN: https://www.newspapers.com/browse/united-states/wisconsin/ 

• Click a city to see newspaper titles.

More info: https://www.newspapers.com/basics/ 

Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers

Access this through BadgerLink using a WI zip code or WI library card. 

The Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers database has older newspapers as well as newspapers from the year 2005 to the present, subtracting 90 days from the current date. 

1. Log into Badgerlink http://badgerlink.dpi.wi.gov/login 

2. Choose "Wisconsin" and enter a zip code - OR - choose a library or school and enter a library barcode number

3. Click "Login"

4. Scroll down and click "Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers" (it has a red "WNA" logo)

   1. Notice there is a "how-to-article" and other links under that category.

5. Click "Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers" link which takes you here: https://badgerlink.newsmemory.com/wna/badgerlink/ 

   1. There is a link to see a video of search instructions and a link to see newspaper titles.

6. For older newspapers, click "Search Historical Newspapers" at the top right corner

7. Following are the SAUK COUNTY newspapers available in the Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers database: 

Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS)

The Wisconsin Historical Society in downtown Madison (816 State Street) has newspapers on microfilm. Before you can begin looking at newspapers, you'll need to know the microfilm reel number. To save research time, you can find all the reel numbers at home, before taking a trip to the Wisconsin Historical Society. On May 20, 2015, the "MadCat" system was eliminated when the catalog changed companies and merged the Library and Archive material into one catalog. Following are directions for using the latest cataloging system of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

Search for microfilmed newspapers by city: https://wisconsinhistory.org/microfilm/search.asp? 

How to search for newspapers in the library catalog using Advanced Search

Method 1: To find newspapers when you know the name of the newspaper:

1. Click the following link to use Advanced Search: https://search.library.wisc.edu/search/catalog/advanced

2. Type a newspaper title into the "Keywords" field

3. Click Search

4. If you want to further narrow down the results, type a newspaper title into the "Title" field and search.

Method 2: To find newspapers when you know the name of the newspaper: 

• 1. Click this link: www.library.wisc.edu

1. In the search box, type the newspaper name (such as Wisconsin State Journal)

2. Hit the Enter key

3. In the results list, look for anything that has "JOURNALS, MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS" above the title

4. Click the title 

5. On the next window, be sure to scroll down the page as some pages are very long

To find newspapers when you don't know the title of the newspaper, search by city name:

1. Click the following link to use Advanced Search: https://search.library.wisc.edu/search/catalog/advanced

2. On the right side ("Format" column), check mark "Journals, Magazines, Newspapers"

3. In the Subject field, type a search term

   1. Example: Spring Green (Wis.) -- Newspapers

4. Scroll down and click the red "Search" button

5. Click the blue title of any publication

   1. Example, click: The Weekly home news (Date 1884-1961)

   2. You are now here: https://search.library.wisc.edu/catalog/999569477902121

   3. Look under "The Library Has:" to see the dates and microfilm numbers available

   4. Microfilm numbers begin with the letter "P" such as P28745 for Weekly Home News issues dated 1887-1890

      1. Write down the entire microfilm number. You'll need this number to find the microfilm box in the Microforms Room at WHS, or to order the microfilm to be sent to your local library. 

      2. Numbers beginning with N are "negative" microfilm that need to be converted to positive. Contact the librarian at WHS to order a positive microfilm (there will be no charge for this). 

   5. Unfortunately you cannot do a reverse search by microfilm reel number.

Tip: On search results pages, look for links that say "check for more recent issues at this location"

Video tutorial created by Nancy McClements at UW-Madison Libraries (requires Adobe Flash Player): http://screencast.com/t/ilMEQNys

Go to the WHS Microforms room to pick up microfilm and read it on their readers. Take a USB flash stick (aka "flash drive" "pen drive") along because the newer "computerized" microfilm readers are capable of saving pages and articles as JPEGs and PDFs to a USB stick (no charge for this). You can also print to paper using their printer (for around 7 cents per page). 

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Click HERE for microfilm reel numbers for Plain and Spring Green, Wisconsin; and links to newspapers in Cazenovia, LaValle Sun Prairie, Waterloo, Watertown, Milwaukee and Madison.

Ship arrivals and departures

These newspapers have ship arrival and departure columns. If you are lucky, the arrival notice will mention passenger names. Even if your ancestor arrived at Baltimore, the New York paper may have reported the ship's arrival. So check both the New York and Baltimore papers. 

• Baltimore papers at newspapers.com (needs subscription or watch for "free" offers): Baltimore Sun; Der Deutsche Correspondent; Täglicher Baltimore Wecker 

• New York newspapers with ship arrivals and departures: New York Times; New York Tribune; The Sun; New York Herald 

  • Library of Congress has newspapers. Search the New York Herald for ship arrivals and departures. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn83030313
    Browse digitized issues. Select a year (1842 to 1879; 1891; 1903; 1906; 1912: 1920

  • New York papers: https://www.newspapers.com/browse/us/new-york/new-york/