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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Clarksville Public Library

Clarksville, Iowa

Explore this community history collection to discover the people, places, organizations, and events of Clarksville.

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1Title

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1872 to 2023Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

166,252Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Clarksville, Iowa.

Discover another side of Clarksville, Iowa through newspapers preserved in the Clarksville Public Library's digital archive. The archive includes Clarksville Star, with material from 1872 to 2023.

You can open the archive using the link below.
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 Explore the Archive

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  • Selected title

    Take a closer look at “Clarksville Star”, shared by Clarksville Public Library.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • Ways to explore

    A familiar name or place can be a starting point. Check the context before connecting a detail to your own story.

The reporting of earlier years offers a way to explore how events were understood as they happened and how local experiences became part of the historical record. A family story, a classroom project or curiosity about a familiar place can lead to a closer look at the community and the lives of earlier generations. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Explore Clarksville Star through 166,252 digitized pages, with material from 1872 to 2023. Through a partnership with Advantage Archives, Clarksville Public Library shares these sources from the past. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

A detail you recognize can be a useful first clue. See what the title records and what it leaves open.

Clarksville Star

166,252 pages from 1872 to 2023

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Partner Story

Clarksville Public Library

The library in Iowa is your one-stop source for all of your informational needs. We have a large selection of books, magazines, newspapers, and electronic resources available to be checked out by our library card holders. Here, you will also find electronic resources, news, announcements, and a calendar of upcoming library events!

Partner Story

Vision

Clarksville Public Library: your place to learn, share, and create.

Partner Story

Mission

Clarksville Public Library connects people with information, ideas, and experiences to provide enjoyment, enrich lives, and strengthen our community.

Partner Story

Values

  • Learning in all forms
  • Diverse perspectives
  • Intellectual freedom
  • Customer experience
  • Collaboration
  • Innovation
  • Making a difference

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Follow a report into its setting

The history of Clarksville includes individual lives as well as events remembered by the wider community. In the digital archive shared by the Clarksville Public Library, begin with a name, place or date connected with the story you want to explore. When using historical newspapers, try alternate spellings and nearby dates, then read the surrounding page to place a local story in its time. Compare later reporting or another available title to explore different perspectives rather than treating one account as the whole story. Read the headline and neighboring articles as well as the matching lines. The surrounding page can show whether a report is local news, an editorial, or another kind of account; compare its details with later coverage where available.

Take a place or institution mentioned in a report as a new search lead. Check the issue date and read nearby articles to see how the setting is described. Preserve historical names and boundaries as written, and compare another dated reference before connecting the place to a present-day location.

Record which title, date, page, or item supports a useful lead. Mark unanswered questions before connecting it to a family or community story. A similar name can point you toward another source, but it is not proof of identity.

Review collection titles

Clarksville Public Library photo 1

Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Clarksville Public Library, its community, and Advantage Archives. Together, these partnerships preserve local sources and give people a way to explore, learn from, and share the history around them.

Advantage Archives covers ongoing archive hosting, storage, development, and maintenance. The institution and its community do not pay a subscription, seat license, annual support contract, or other recurring archive-service charge. Local history remains a community resource, not a subscription to maintain.

Would you like to see more of your community's history preserved and accessible? Start a conversation with your library, newspaper publisher, historical or genealogical society, museum, or school about the materials they would like to share and a possible partnership with Advantage Archives.

Learn about partnerships
Read All About It

Stories, research tips, and archive news

Read All About It connects archive research with the people and institutions preserving local history. Explore partner and community stories, project updates, research ideas, and perspectives on digitization, education, and working with primary sources. Use the articles as a starting point for your next question or a new way to share a discovery.

Newest published articles

March 18, 2025

It’s Your Community’s History, So Why Rent Something You Own?

We believe that history belongs to the communities where it was made - not locked behind paywalls or inaccessible due to budget restrictions. Subscription-based services and large content aggregators are generally more concerned with "content" and less concerned with the history that content contains. Their models typically involve a reoccurring charge for a plan that renews annually or licensing agreements with the library based on population served or circulation numbers. You are essentially Renting Access To YOUR History.
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