Scope and Content

This collection consists of partial runs of various West Side area newspapers. Newspapers are listed alphabetically by title.  Oversized issues, as well as bound issues and issues available on microfilm, are listed separately following the Box and Folder Inventory. 
 

Provenance

The West Side Newspaper Collection was originally part of the collections of the West Side Historical Society, which formed at the Legler Branch of The Chicago Public Library in 1929-30 to promote and collect the history of Chicago’s west side.  Upon the dissolution of the Historical Society in the late 1950s, its records and materials remained at the Legler Branch where they suffered the mistreatment and depredations of unsupervised use and inadequate storage facilities.  To protect the materials, the University of Illinois at Chicago agreed to tale the collection into temporary custody in 1976.  Ten years later, the collection was transferred intact to the Special Collections Department of The Chicago Public Library.

The West Side Historical Society materials were divided up into some twenty neighborhood collections.  This newspaper collection is not specific to any one neighborhood but contains papers published throughout the west side.

This collection was processed under a grant from the Dr. Scholl Foundation in 1986.  Its guide was later found to contain numerous errors and incomplete information.  When two titles which should have been included in the collection were discovered in unprocessed material in the Department, the collection was reprocessed in 1993.
Processed by Galen R. Wilson, April 1993.

Access 

The West Side Newspaper Collection is available to the public for research in the Special Collections and Preservation Division Reading Room on the 9th floor of the Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center, 400 South State Street, Chicago, Illinois, 60605. The collection does not circulate, although photocopy and photoreproduction services are available depending upon the condition of the original materials. First time patrons to Special Collections must present photo identification and complete a Reader Registration Form. Telephone inquiries on this collection and other Special Collections holdings can be directed to 312-747-4875.

Box and Folder Inventory

BOX 1

The Argus (v.1, n.2)

1. 1886 June

The Austinite (Garfield Park Edition)

2. 1932 Jan 13, 20
3. 1932 Feb 3, 10, 17, 24
4. 1932 Mar 2, 9, 16, 30
5. 1932 Apr 27, May 11, 25
6. 1932 June 8, 15, 22, 29
7. 1932 July 13, 20, 27
8. 1932 Aug 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
9. 1932 Sep 8, 14, 21, 28
10. 1932 Oct 5, 12, 19, Nov. 2, 9, 16

The Austinite (Park West News)

11. 1932 Dec 7, 14, 21

BOX 2

1. 1933 Jan 4, Feb 8
    1933 Jan 11, 18, 25, Feb 8
2. 1933 Mar 15, 22, 29
3. 1933 Apr 5, 12, 19, 26
4. 1933 May 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
5. 1933 June 7, 14, 21, 28
6. 1933 July 5, 12, 19, 26
7. 1933 Aug 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
8. 1933 Sep 6, 13, 20, 27
9. 1933 Oct 4, 11, 18, 25
10. 1933 Nov 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
11. 1933 Dec 6, 13, 20, 27

BOX 3

1. 1937 Nov 10, 17, 24
2. 1937 Dec 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
3. 1938 Jan 5, 12, 19, 26
4. 1938 Feb 2, 9, 16, 23
5. 1938 Mar 16, 23, 30
6. 1938 Apr 6, 13, 20, 27
7. 1938 May 11, 18, 25
8. 1938 June 1, 8, 15
9. 1938 July 6
10. 1946 Mar 20

BOX 4

Chicago Daily News

1. 1938 Dec 31 (Employees’ edition)

Garfield News

2. 1947 Mar 12
3. 1948 Mar 10
4. 1949 Mar 30
5. 1949 Apr 6

6. 1949 Apr 13
7. 1949 Apr 20
8. 1949 Apr 27
9. 1949 May 4

10. 1949 May 11
11. 1949 May 18
12. 1949 May 25
13. 1949 June 1

Garfield Park Cooperator

14. 1937 June (v.1, n.1)

Humboldt Weekly Community Counsellor

15. 1939 Mar 30
16. 1939 Apr 6
17. 1939 May 3

Midwest Chicagoan

18. 1931 Sep 4

New Generation

19. 1940 Oct

Stationary Engineer

20. 1886 Apr

BOX 5

West Side News

1. 1940 Feb 21

West Town News

2. 1924 June 20
3. 1926 uncollated

Volume 7 (1927) #1-5, 7-8, 11-16, 18-29, 31-33, 35, 37-43, 45-51 
4. 1927 Jan-Mar
5. 1927 Apr-Jun
6. 1927 Jul-Aug
7. 1927 Sep-Oct
8. 1927 Nov-Dec

BOX 6

Volume 8 (1928) complete
1. 1928 Jan-Feb
2. 1928 Mar-Apr
3. 1928 May-Jun
4. 1928 Jul-Aug
5. 1928 Sep-Oct
6. 1928 Nov-Dec

Volume 9 (1929) #6, 52
7. 1929 Feb 8, Dec. 27

West Towns Leader

8. 1935 Dec
9. 1937 Aug/Sep, Oct
10. 1938 Jan, Mar, Nov

Westcenter Chicagoan

11. 1921 Mar 26
12. 1922 Jan 7
 

OVERSIZE MATERIAL
  

Brighton Park Life

Oversize 1     1939 May 18 (2 copies)

Central North-West Topics

Oversize 2     1936 Aug 27

Chicago Daily News

Oversize 3     1878 May 24

Community Reporter

Oversize 4     1950 Sep 27 (Special historical issue)

Garfieldian

Oversize 5     1914 Apr 17
                       1931 Oct 15

Midwest News

Oversize 6     1940 May 14

Union Park Banner

Oversize 7     1880 Sep 4

West End Advocate

Oversize 8     1885 July 25

West Side Review

Oversize 9     1908 Jan 3
Oversize 10   1908 Feb 7

Weekly Recorder

Oversize 11     1902 Nov 13

West Town News (Westtown edition of The Garfieldian)

Oversize 12     1940 Mar 14
 

BOUND NEWSPAPERS
  

Community Reporter

1948 Jan-Dec
1949 Jan-Dec
1950 Jan-Dec
1951 Jan-Dec

Garfieldian

1935-1966
This title is on microfilm for 1935-1955, lacking 1950 and 1953.  As hard copy is brittle, microfilm should be used where possible.

South Side News

Vol. 10 1933-1934

 continued as Southwest News

Vol. 11-21  1934-1945

 continued as Southwest News Herald

 Vol. 22-27  1045-1951

West Side Life

1932 Jul 20-Sep 25

West Side News

1932 Nov-Dec
1933-1935 complete
1937-1942 complete
1944-1948 complete
1949 Jan-Feb

Lawndale News

1949 Feb-Dec (bound with West Side News for Jan-Feb 1949)

 

NEWSPAPERS ON MICROFILM

The following titles are on microfilm.  They are stored in the Department’s microfilm cabinets.
 

 Garfieldian

1935-1949
1951-1952
1954-1955
There is hard copy of title for 1935-1966. 

Midwest News

 1934 Feb 17 (v.1, n.2)—1943 Dec 9 (v. 14, n. 31)
 Scattered issues only.  See film for complete list.

Polonia

 1924 (v. 18) complete
 1937 (v. 31) complete