If you have ancestors from southeastern Iowa or northwestern Illinois—or if you’re interested in the history of these two regions—come explore the Quad-City Times on Newspapers.com.

Newspapers.com also has a host of papers from the Quad-City Times family tree, including the Daily Leader, the Davenport Weekly Leader, the Davenport Weekly Democrat and Leader, Weekly Davenport Democrat, the Democrat and Times, the Daily Times, the Davenport Weekly Gazette, and the Democratic Banner. Some of these papers go all the way back to the 1850s, giving you more than 160 years of Iowa and Illinois history!

The Quad-City Times has existed under that name since 1975, but it was previously called the Times-Democrat because in 1964 the paper was formed by the merger of two papers: the Daily Times and the Morning Democrat (found on Newspapers.com under the Quad-City Times). The Daily Times‘ history was fairly straightforward, starting out as the Blue Ribbon News in 1878, before becoming the Northwestern News in 1879 and then finally the Davenport Daily Times in 1886.

The Morning Democrat, in contrast, had more than two dozen titles in its family tree, starting with a paper called the Democratic Banner, founded in 1848. The various papers competed, merged, and changed names over a 100-year period, until the Morning Democrat emerged as the sole surviving paper out of the bunch (at least until the Morning Democrat’s own merger with the Daily Times in 1964).

As its name implies, the Quad-City Times serves the Quad Cities area of Iowa and Illinois (Davenport, Bettendorf, Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline), as well as the surrounding counties. The Quad-City Times, along with the earlier papers it grew out of, has documented more than a century and a half of goings on in the region. From big events (like the 1901 fire that burned 8 blocks of Davenport) to smaller occasions (like weddings and school excursions), these newspapers were there to capture local happenings, making the papers a great resource for finding stories about your ancestors or learning more about area history.

Get started searching or browsing the Quad-City Times on Newspapers.com!

If you’re interested in Nebraska newspapers, come explore the Lincoln Journal Star and some related papers: the Lincoln Star, the Nebraska State Journal, the Weekly Nebraska State Journal, the Sunday Journal and Star, the Courier, and the Lincoln Evening Call. Through these papers, you can go back more than a century in Nebraska history, with some stretching as far back as 1867!

The Lincoln Journal Star was formed in 1995 by the merger of the Lincoln Journal and the Lincoln Star, each of which had its own long history. The Lincoln Journal’s history was complex, with many name changes, buy-outs, and mergers over the decades. The oldest paper in the Lincoln Journal’s family tree was the Nebraska Commonwealth, which was started in 1867. Other papers on the Journal’s family tree include the Lincoln Evening Call, the Courier, and the Nebraska State Journal—just to name a few of many.

Comparatively, the Lincoln Star’s history is straightforward: it was founded in 1902 as the Lincoln Daily Star, and only changed its name once—to the Lincoln Star in 1921. Although the Journal and Star weren’t officially combined until 1995, they had published under a joint operating agreement since 1950 and had published a combined Sunday edition (the Sunday Journal and Star) since 1931 and combined Saturday and holiday editions since 1990.

If you are interested in Nebraska history, the Lincoln Journal Star and its related papers are a treasure trove of information. For instance, you can find an essay by famous author Willa Cather in the Nebraska State Journal that was published in 1891, when she was just 17!

These Lincoln newspapers are also valuable resources for finding your Nebraska relatives. Since many of these papers, especially the earlier ones, overlap in years they published, you are even more likely to find the information you’re looking for. For example, if you were looking for information on an ancestor who lived in Lincoln in 1902, the Courier, Lincoln Evening News (included under the Lincoln Journal Star), Lincoln Star, and Nebraska State Journal were all publishing that year, increasing the likelihood of finding your ancestor.

Get started searching the Lincoln Journal Star on Newspapers.com! With a Basic subscription you can access years up through 1922, or with a Publisher Extra subscription you can access all available years.

Do you have ancestors or other family from the Tampa Bay area? Or are you interested in Florida history? Come explore the Tampa Bay Times (formerly the St. Petersburg Times), as well as the Tampa Tribune and the Tampa Times, on Newspapers.com!

The Tampa Bay Times, currently Florida’s largest paper, got its start in 1884 as a small weekly paper called the West Hillsborough Times. During the 1890s, the paper moved to St. Petersburg and the name was changed to the St. Petersburg Times, a title it would retain for more than a century. As the St. Petersburg Times, the paper ran twice weekly beginning in 1907, published six days a week starting in 1912, then became a true daily in the 1920s.

Perhaps the most notable figure in the St. Petersburg Times’ history is Nelson Poynter, who was at various points the Times’ general manager, editor, and majority stockholder. The Times’ flourished under Poynter’s hand, becoming the respected, Pulitzer Prize-winning paper it is today. Upon his death in 1978, Poynter willed most of the paper’s stock to a non-profit journalism school (today’s Poynter Institute), ensuring that the Times’ could remain independent and locally owned.

In 2012, the St. Petersburg Times changed its name to the Tampa Bay Times to more accurately reflect the geographical area it served. Then, in 2016, the Tampa Bay Times bought its long-time rival, the Tampa Tribune, which then ceased publication.

The Tampa Tribune, prior to its demise, had its own long history, dating back to the 1890s. In the 20th century, that history became interwoven with a paper called the Tampa Times (founded in 1893), which the Tribune purchased in 1958 and continued to publish until 1982.

All three papers—the Tampa Bay Times, the Tampa Tribune, and the Tampa Times—have recorded the happenings of the Tampa Bay area since the 19th century and provide a wealth of information on the history and inhabitants of the area. For instance, if you’re curious about Tampa’s famous Cuban cigar industry, take a look at this page from the 17 December 1922 issue of the Tampa Tribune celebrating the industry’s most productive year up to that date. Or if the region’s inhabitants are what interest you, take a look at these great photos from a 1941 state band competition that were featured in the Tampa Bay Times (then the St. Petersburg Times).

Get started searching or browsing the Tampa Bay Times, the Tampa Tribune, and the Tampa Times on Newspapers.com. With a Basic subscription, you can access issues up to 1922; or with a Publisher Extra subscription, access those early years as well as issues from later years.