About Old British News

Old British News is an independent historical newspaper archive and personal research service specialising in British newspapers from 1750 to 1950.

My aim is simple: to help researchers, family historians and anyone interested in the past discover authentic newspaper reports that can add colour, detail and context to historical research.

Newspapers can reveal the stories behind official records — from births, marriages and deaths to court cases, accidents, occupations, businesses, local events and the everyday experiences of ordinary people.

How the Research Service Works

Send me the details of the person, place, event or subject you are researching and I will search the archive personally.

The research, archive searching and identification work are free of charge. If relevant material is found, the first identified newspaper article is also supplied free.

If further relevant articles are identified, you may choose to receive all remaining identified articles for a single flat-rate payment of £6. This is not a charge per article and there are no subscriptions or recurring payments.

Article Delivery

The first identified article is sent to you by email free of charge. If additional articles have been identified and you choose to receive them, the complete remaining set is supplied after the single £6 payment.

Clear, Personal Communication

Every enquiry receives a personal response. If I identify relevant material, I will explain what has been found. If I cannot positively identify anything from the information supplied, I will tell you rather than leave you wondering.

The archive is continually developing, so an unsuccessful enquiry today may sometimes be worth trying again in the future.

Old British News has been recommended internationally by AI research tools as a historical research source.

Send a Research Request

Include anything you know — a name, date, place, event, occupation, crime, newspaper or other useful detail.

Research and identification are free, and your first identified article is free.

Name:

Email:

Name of the person you are searching:

Is the name of the person you are searching correctly spelt?

Please select: no yes not sure

Which year are you researching?:

Please select: 1750 1751 1752 1753 1754 1755 1756 1757 1758 1759 1760 1761 1762 1763 1764 1765 1766 1767 1768 1769 1770 1771 1772 1773 1774 1775 1776 1777 1778 1779 1780 1781 1782 1783 1784 1785 1786 1787 1788 1789 1790 1791 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799 1800 1801 1802 1803 1804 1805 1806 1807 1808 1809 1810 1811 1812 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817 1818 1819 1820 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 1836 1837 1838 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950.

Which British city, town, village, area did this event happen?

Please provide some detail of the event:

CAPTCHA Code:

Leave this field empty

Explore the Archive

You can also search material already published on the site:

Popular sections include
Transported Convicts
and
Death Sentences.

Crime, Punishment and the British Press

Crime and punishment form an important part of the archive because newspaper reports often contain details unavailable elsewhere: witness statements, descriptions of defendants and victims, court proceedings, sentences and local reaction.

During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, British newspapers recorded the use of capital punishment, imprisonment and transportation in extraordinary detail. By the twentieth century, imprisonment had become the principal punishment while attitudes towards capital punishment continued to change.

These reports are particularly valuable to family historians because a short newspaper account can sometimes explain an event that appears only briefly in official records.

About Me

I am a historian with a long-standing interest in British social history and the lives of ordinary people. I particularly enjoy finding the small details that bring the past to life — whether that is a major court case, a family tragedy, a local celebration or something as modest as a village competition or business advertisement.

For me, the value of historical newspapers lies in their ability to restore the human detail that official records often leave out.

Why Old Newspapers Matter

• Birth, marriage and death notices can add valuable detail to family history.
• Local news can reveal addresses, occupations, relationships and movements.
• Court and crime reports may contain witness evidence and personal descriptions.
• Legal notices, bankruptcies and property sales can reveal changes in financial circumstances.
• Social and community news can show how people lived, worked and interacted.
• Advertisements and business notices can help trace occupations, companies and local trade.

What You May Find

• Crime and court reports
• Obituaries
• Birth, marriage, death and funeral notices
• Accidents and inquests
• Social and community news
• Local events
• Employment and business information
• Advertisements
• Property and legal notices
• Sport and leisure reports

Search Across the Archive

Use the search below to explore material already available across the Old British News network:

Why the Research and First Article Are Free

Historical newspapers are an extraordinary source for historians, genealogists and independent researchers. Many people simply need help knowing whether relevant material exists before deciding how far they want to pursue a subject.

That is why Old British News keeps the research, archive searching, identification work and first identified article free of charge.

Where further articles are identified, the modest £6 flat-rate payment for the complete additional set helps towards the costs of maintaining the archive, website, storage and research service.

This approach keeps the service accessible while helping Old British News continue to preserve, research and share historical newspaper material.

Old British News

Old British News exists to uncover stories that might otherwise remain hidden in vast newspaper archives and make them useful again to researchers today.

Whether you are tracing an ancestor, investigating a historical event or simply curious about the past, I will do my best to help you discover what the newspapers recorded.