Cathy

'I think The British Newspaper Archive is the best site I've found this year.'

What will you discover in The British Newspaper Archive?

There are millions of fascinating stories waiting to be found. Search the newspapers for a person, place or event to get started.

Sally

'The British Newspaper Archive is brilliant. As a tool for family history research it really is invaluable because it fills in so many missing bits.

I have only been a member for a few days and have already discovered so much – including this photo of my great-grandfather in the Yorkshire Evening Post which has thrilled me to bits.'

Kate, Author of Essex Voices Past

'The British Newspaper Archive is one of my 'must have' resources for writing local and family history. I have a year's membership and am so glad I purchased it because of the wealth of information, which I use for my local history books and my blog.

One of the most viewed posts on my blog is about my 4x great-grandmother, her daughters and the scandalous story of a breach of promise of marriage - with the story gleaned from local newspapers reporting the juicy details of the court case.'

Matt Brown, Editor-at-Large of Londonist

'I’m actually addicted to The British Newspaper Archive. I wake up in the middle of the night wondering… did the Victorians ever roller skate? What did people think about Nelson’s column when it was first unveiled? Has anyone ever attempted a tightrope walk over the Thames?

A quick search, and I get my answers. Except then I can’t possibly go back to sleep because one search leads to another. If you’re curious about the past, then The British Newspaper Archive is your best friend for life.'

Eugene

'A subscription to The British Newspaper Archive is an absolute must for amateur and professional historians, genealogists and anyone who takes an intelligent interest in the story of their town, county or country.

Nothing else can come as close to making you an eyewitness to great and trivial events, and nothing else will provide you with such a rich feast of stories of ordinary people, tales both tragic and funny (or sometimes just plain strange).

The British Newspaper Archive is as entertaining as it is useful, and it is probably my very favourite thing in the entire internet.’

Sandra

'I stumbled across a fantastic little sketch of my great grandfather William Watson in the Edinburgh Evening News. I think the artist achieved a real likeness – compare it to the photo I have of him:

I think The British Newspaper Archive is an amazing resource for genealogists, particularly those of us who live overseas and aren’t able to access local archives.

You have no idea how delighted I was to stumble across the sketch of William – imagine a ‘happy dance’ happening at 2am in my house in New Zealand!’

Maxine

'I have found so much out about my gg-grandfather's life. There are literally dozens of articles mentioning him alone, never mind the other people in my family tree.

I've even found a picture of him - all thanks to you! To find a picture is the absolute Holy Grail of family history, so I was delighted with that one.'

Lisamarie

'I recently found this photo of my great-great-uncle in a newspaper article on your website:

I have been searching for one since my grandmother told me about meeting him before the First World War.

Thanks for making a wish I have held since I was 15 years old come true.'

Lynne

'I've just bought a subscription to The British Newspaper Archive and found some cracking stuff about my granddad.

He played the piano on a cruise for the Prince of Wales and Prince George in 1931!'

Bob

'I got some fabulous insights into characters that had only previously been names on a census listing or on a birth or marriage certificate.

I’d strongly recommend it to anybody looking for a new dimension to their research.'

Claire

'I'm a PhD student researching the passengers who travelled on the SS Great Britain in response to news of the Goldrush in Victoria.

So far I've traced 250 of them, many of them thanks to invaluable clues from the newspapers. One passenger discovered a lump of gold the size of a leg of lamb and came home a millionaire.'

Sarah

'I have been trying to find information about my great-great-great-grandfather for more than 30 years. 

Through a simple newspaper search, I found an article about his death. I now know he was from Brettenham in Suffolk, that his father’s name was William and his mother was Susannah Pawsey.'

Make your own amazing discovery

Find out more about your ancestors or unearth a forgotten story from the past - start searching the newspapers today.