The Michigan Newspaper Project is now complete. This project cataloged thousands of newspaper titles, and filmed hundreds of reels of microfilm preserving access to this important historical resource.

Mission

The purpose of the Michigan Newspaper Project (MNP) is to preserve Michigan's rich newspaper resources and make them accessible to researchers and the general public. Newspapers provide a rich source of local information but are often hard to locate and are in a very fragile condition. The Project's inventory and cataloging work allows libraries and researchers to identify and locate these newspapers. The microfilming phase preserves the newspapers in a stable format. Newspapers microfilmed by MNP are available through interlibrary loan from the Library of Michigan.

Advisory Board

Early in the project, MNP established an advisory group that consisted of representatives from Michigan institutions with a significant interest in newspaper holdings throughout the state. The institutions currently include: Central Michigan University, Detroit Public Library, University of Michigan, Wayne State University, Western Michigan University, Grand Rapids Public Library, Michigan Technological University, the Michigan Historical Society, the Michigan Genealogical Council and the Library of Michigan. The advisory group meets periodically and gives input on current and future phases of the project.

Inventory and Cataloging Phase

MNP was planned in three phases in accordance with NEH guidelines. The first of the three phases was a planning and inventory process that was completed in 1995. The second phase was the cataloging phase that began in 1995.

The Project has cataloged approximately 3700 Michigan titles. The staff has visited collections from Monroe to Houghton logging thousands of miles on Michigan's highways. They have visited academic libraries, public libraries, museums, historical societies and publishers. They have encountered titles in 17 languages, covering every political, social and ethnic spectrum. They have cataloged titles from 1809 through those currently being published.

MNP Microfilming Phase

Completion of the Cataloging Phase provides the basis for this last part of the Project, the Microfilming Phase. Because of the extent of as yet unfilmed newspaper titles, only a select number of newspaper titles were filmed by the Project. The microfilming phase began in the summer of 2002, with the Clarke Historical Library at Central Michigan University taking responsibility for the microfilming. Both Central Michigan University and the Library of Michigan house a copy of all newly filmed newspapers.

Updated 04/11/2007