Newspapers and Serials Collection

Abstract

This collection contains serial publications that address the social conditions of early Chicago as well as the national and international events that took place during the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Notable in the collection are serials published in languages other than English, which reflect the diverse immigrant communities of early Chicago. It also features titles that were published before the devastating Great Chicago fire of 1871, publications that delve into the study of the Civil War both contemporaneously and retrospectively, and periodicals focusing on Chicago’s railroad system. Additionally, this collection offers an extensive range of periodicals covering topics such as rare book collecting, conservation, library science, and archival and museum science.

Biographical/Historical

A serial is a publication, such as a magazine, newspaper, or scholarly journal, that is published in ongoing installments. This collection includes all these formats as well as newsletters and others, like the Chicago Public Library’s (CPL) in-house reports and publications.

The serials in this collection were acquired through various transfers from departments within the Chicago Public Library, specifically the Harold Washington Library Center, that once subscribed to or purchased them to support departmental subject areas. The titles that were transferred to Special Collections were reviewed by Special Collections staff for rarity and historical research value. Traditionally, first-hand accounts and discoveries in research are written and published in serials, often making the contents in serials valuable primary sources. Because CPL originally subscribed to many of these titles, the list also gives a snapshot of the collecting scope of a metropolitan library system during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Scope and Contents

There are four main types of serials: newspapers, magazines, journals and newsletters. This collection ranges in subject, date and format, including loose print issues, bound volumes, microfilm and microfiche. Micro-format has been noted in this guide.

The bulk of the publications in this collection centers around Chicago and delves into topics like the early conditions of the city. There are also significant titles that explore a diverse array of national and global subjects. These include the 19^th century Godey’s Lady’s Book, a women’s periodical, and the Book of the Royal Blue, a publication from the 19^th century that focuses on a Middle Atlantic States express train.

The collection is particularly notable for the age of the titles it contains. A significant number of these titles were published outside the United States and were likely donated, forming the foundation of Chicago Public Library’s opening day research collection. A few titles even date back to the 1670s, with Gentleman’s Magazine being particularly noteworthy for its publication span from 1731 to 1907. Many other titles pre-date the 1871 Great Chicago fire such as Sloan in the Garden, Congregational Review, Chicago Census Report, Nation, the American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals publication, and Sonntags & Blatt. Additionally, there are numerous titles that cover the Civil War, including Harper’s Magazine, which was published during that time as well as others that retrospectively delve into the Civil War, like The National Banner.

Various immigrant groups that settled in Chicago are represented in national and international serial publications, often in languages other than English. For instance, the German American historical review, known as Deutsch-amerikanische Geschichtsblätter, catered to Chicago’s German population, which was the largest ethnic group in Chicago until 1900. Additionally, publications like Hototogisu, a Japanese haiku literature periodical from the early 20^th century, were noted and preserved as Japanese Americans settled in Chicago in the late 1890s. Furthermore, Norwegian settlers likely enjoyed the 19^th century Norwegian fiction published in Illustreret famileblad.

Mass transportation, such as buses and railroads played a crucial role in Chicago’s development, and several periodicals cover this topic. Chicago Railway Review addressed railways and their early engineering, and Bus Transportation addressed bus lines, cabs and omnibus services.

Another topic well covered by the collection is that of rare book collecting and library, information, archival and museum science, such as Museum News, and American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (A.I.C.) and a selection of titles that deals with conservation and bookbinding.

Arrangement

The inventory is arranged alphabetically by publication title and compiles the dates and known title information for each serial.

Indexes have been identified separately. Information enclosed in parentheses and brackets provides the titles of publications that have undergone name changes, the language of the publication if other than English and information on date ranges and volume and issue numbers.

Subject Heading

• Agriculture -- Periodicals
• Archival -- Periodicals
• Art -- Periodicals
• Automotive -- Periodicals
• Bicycling -- Periodicals
• Book Collecting --Periodicals
• Business -- Periodicals
• Children’s Periodical
• Community newspapers -- Illinois -- Chicago
• Current Events -- Periodicals
• Electrical Engineering -- Periodicals
• English periodicals
• Flower gardening -- Periodicals
• Food industry and trade -- Periodicals
• Library Services -- Periodicals
• Literature -- Periodicals -- 19th Century
• Literature -- Periodicals -- 20th Century
• Newspapers -- Illinois -- Chicago -- 19th Century
• Newspapers -- Illinois -- Chicago -- 20th Century
• Museum Science --Periodicals
• Periodicals – 18th Century
• Periodicals -- Illinois -- Chicago -- 19th Century
• Periodicals -- Illinois -- Chicago -- 20th Century
• Politics -- Periodicals
• Printing -- Periodicals
• Railroad -- Periodicals
• Religion -- Periodicals
• Schools -- Periodicals
• Transportation -- Illinois -- Chicago -- Periodicals
• Transportation -- Periodicals
• Women’s --Periodicals
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Periodicals

Related Materials

• American Civil War Newspapers
• Austin Newspapers Collection
• Back of the Yards Newspaper Collection
• Cataloged serials – Search CPL’s catalog for historical serials that have been assigned catalog call numbers
• Chicago African American and Latinx Newspapers Microfilm Collection
• Chicago Examiner Digital Collection
• Englewood Newspaper Collection
• Greek Star Newspaper Collection
• Hegewisch and East Side Newspaper Collection
• Microfilm and newspaper collection at CPL’s Harold Washington Library Center, 5^th floor
• Online newspaper subscription databases through CPL’s website, including The Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Defender, and the Chicago Sun-Times
• Residents’ Journal Records, including Residents’ Journal Digital Collection
• South Chicago Newspaper Collection
• South Shore Newspaper Collection
• West Side Newspaper Collection
• Youth’s Companion Collection

Collection Inventory