A significant piece of Riverina history is now easier to access as the first 38 years of The Daily Advertiser have entered the digital era.

 

In a new project, researchers are able to search the early pages of The Daily Advertiser from their own computers.

 

Manager of Charles Sturt University (CSU) Regional Archives, Mr Wayne Doubleday said, “The early editions of The Daily Advertiser, from its establishment in 1868 to 1905, have been  digitised. The digitised copies are freely available through the National Library of Australia’s online search site, TROVE.

 

A Heads of Agreement to mark the first stage of The Daily Advertiser Digitisation Project will be signed at 11am on Wednesday 8 May at the Wagga Wagga City Library.

 

Signing the document to mark their cooperation and support for the new initiative will be representatives of CSU, Wagga Wagga and District Historical Society, The Daily Advertiser and Wagga Wagga City Council.

 

“The Riverina community are able to search The Daily Advertiser for any event, person, story or article from 1868 to1905 using TROVE,” Mr Doubleday said.

 

“Previously, researchers had to visit the Charles Sturt University Regional Archives at South Campus in Wagga Wagga to inspect the original newspapers. Otherwise you had to know the exact date of a newspaper item to find it in microfilm copies at the Wagga Wagga City Library as no index of The Daily Advertiser had ever been compiled.

 

“They are now be able to download and save PDF copies of the newspaper or print out an article or page as desired.

“In archival terms, the real benefit of The Daily Advertiser Digitisation Project is that the original newspapers 1868 to 1950 housed at the University’s Regional Archives will no longer be available for public access.

 

“This means the deterioration of the original papers will be slowed and reduced significantly through less handling and photocopying.

 

 “We hope that if funding can be found for the second stage of the Project, the digitisation of The Daily Advertiser can continue right up to 1955 when copyright restrictions began in Australia.