Library Briefings

Atlanta Constitution online

Full-text, historical contents of paper that chronicled rise of the post-war South

The Library has now added the Atlanta Constitution to its suite of ProQuest Historical Newspapers, which also includes the full-text and full-images of historical editions of the The Chicago Tribune, Chicago Defender, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.

“Born during the Reconstruction Era, the Atlanta Constitution soon became the leading newspaper of the South,” says African American Studies Librarian Kathleen Bethel, “and it helped espouse the industrialization of the ‘New South.’" Access to the full-text, full-image, online edition of the historical Constitution allows Northwestern students, faculty, and staff to read first-hand accounts of Reconstruction and the postwar South, learn about the region surrounding Atlanta, and trace the course of the southern economy as it moved into the first quarter of the 20th century. A complete run of the paper's issues from 1868 to 1929 is available.

“The addition of the Atlanta Constitution to the library’s digital collection of historic newspapers provides our community with unparalleled regional coverage,” notes history bibliographer Harriet Lightman. “The Library has an outstanding collection of materials for the study of the American south, and the Constitution bolsters this collection.”

Questions and comments about the Atlanta Constitution and other ProQuest Historical Newspapers can be directed to Harriet Lightman, h-lightman@northwestern.edu, 847-491-2920.