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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Middleborough Public Library

Middleborough, Massachusetts

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

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11Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1852 to 2025Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

231,928Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Middleborough, Massachusetts.

Get to know Middleborough, Massachusetts in earlier years through the newspapers shared in the Middleborough Public Library's digital archive. Its eleven titles include material from 1852 to 2025.

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

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  • Selected titles

    Explore titles such as “Feuilleton” and “The Peoples Fireside Journal”, shared by Middleborough Public Library.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • A closer look

    A familiar name or event takes on another dimension in the newspaper coverage of its time, alongside the stories that mattered to the readers of that issue.

Historical newspapers can connect a family name with the events and everyday concerns of an earlier time, offering more than a date or a name on its own. Bring a family connection, a question about a familiar place or an interest in local history, and see where the sources lead. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Browse eleven titles and 231,928 digitized pages, with material from 1852 to 2025. A partnership between Middleborough Public Library and Advantage Archives makes this collection available. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

Bring a person, place or date you recognize, and browse the titles below for a first clue in the story you want to follow.

Feuilleton

4 pages in 1890

Middleboro Journal

8 pages in 1942

Middleboro News

96 pages from 1881 to 1902

Middleborugh Villager-Journal

784 pages from 1978 to 1979

Namasket Gazette

1,594 pages from 1852 to 1857

Nemasket Week

4,538 pages from 2022 to 2025

Nemasket Weekly

Page count not currently available dates not yet available

Talk of the Town

28 pages in 1936

The Middleboro Gazette

223,740 pages from 1857 to 2021

The Nemasket River Journal

920 pages from 1977 to 1978

The Peoples Fireside Journal

216 pages from 1879 to 1881

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About the Archive

About The Middleborough Public Library’s History Archives

Explore the Middleborough Public Library ’s extensive collection of historical newspapers and local history resources, available for free access through our partnership with Advantage Archives . Our archive contains thousands of pages, spanning from 1852 to 1927. This digitization project has been made possible through generous donations and community support, ensuring that our local history is preserved and accessible to all.

Middleborough Public Library photo 1

About the Library

About The Middleborough Public Library

The Middleborough Public Library engages and empowers the community through collections, programs, and services that inform, educate, and entertain. The library strives to be both a cornerstone of the community and a gateway to exploring a wider world. We value our patrons and communities, equal access and intellectual freedom, flexibility and collaboration, diversity and inclusion, and continuous improvement.

Library History

The History Of The Middleborough Public Library

The Middleborough Public Library has a rich history dating back to 1875. Initially located in the Town Hall, the library moved several times due to space constraints before finally settling into its current building in 1904, funded by a bequest from Thomas S. Peirce. Over the years, the library has expanded its services and collections, continuously adapting to the needs of the community.

About the Community

About Middleborough, Massachusetts

Middleborough, Massachusetts, located in Plymouth County, is a town rich in history and community spirit. Established in 1669, Middleborough has a vibrant community life and is known for its beautiful landscapes, historical landmarks, and cultural events. The town's commitment to education and cultural enrichment is reflected in its institutions, including the Middleborough Public Library.

Local History

Did You Know?

Did you know that the Middleborough Public Library's archives include historical newspapers dating back to 1852? The library also plays a significant role in the community by offering a wide variety of programs, technology presentations, informational sessions, and much more.

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Follow a report into its setting

Start with something you would like to understand about the past of Middleborough. It might be a person, a neighborhood or an event remembered in your family. Use the digital archive shared by the Middleborough Public Library to follow that question into the historical record. 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

Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Middleborough 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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