Princeton Public Library adding website to house local newspapers

The Princeton Public Library is working with Innovative Document Imaging to transfer the Bureau County Republican newspapers into a user-friendly PDF format.

IDI will build and support the website, data and search functions. The end result will look to provide an easy, searchable access platform for each year and individual edition.

“Currently we have the entire paper available on microfilm, with the exception of the past five years,” Director Julie Wayland said. “Other services only offer the content on an article by article basis. This tool will present the entire layout, including weather, sports, advertisements and other items as they are originally published.”

The library currently has every edition of the BCR from the start of the paper through 2017 on microfilm. Staff will submit the physical papers to IDI to be scanned for the website and returned with a microfilm version.

Due to the cost, the library is unable to transfer all of the back issues at this time. The board of Trustees has approved the ongoing addition to the budget to decrease the gap and the Friends of the Library has agreed to contribute to the project.

IDI is currently developing the website and transferring 2018 issues. The 2022 issues will be sent to IDI in January. Once the gap is closed, the library will begin sending the oldest editions and the most current year of BCRs annually with the goal of having the entire collection available and searchable on the website.

“This is going to make it so much easier for researchers and genealogy enthusiasts to locate information using names and keywords to return all issues within a given year,” Local History Librarian, Margaret Martinkus said.