Philadelphia Resources: Newspapers and Magazines

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, one of the longest surviving daily newspapers in the United States, is known for its coverage of the American Civil War that was popular with readers on both sides; its published works by Charles Dickens and Edgar Allen Poe; and its reporting of breaking news in the city, country, and around the world. From the first shots fired upon Fort Sumter and the start of the Civil War, to the assassination of civil rights advocate Octavius V. Catto over the right for Blacks to vote; from the flu pandemic of 1918 that killed 12,000 Philly residents in one month — and 675,000 in all nationwide — to the debut of a local dance show, American Bandstand in 1952, The Philadelphia Inquirer offers a regional perspective of an exceptionally unique mix of historical events as they unfolded. For researchers on a range of subjects, such as American History and culture, African American studies, literature and economics, the digitized pages of this prestigious newspaper — founded with an editorial commitment to the right of a minority to set forth its opinions, “however discordant they may be with those of the majority” — are an accessible, insightful, invaluable resource.