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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Morton Public Library

Morton, Illinois

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

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11Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1820 to 2025Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

355,360Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Morton, Illinois.

Explore the past of Morton, Illinois through newspapers in the Morton Public Library's digital archive. Its eleven titles include material from 1820 to 2025.

You can open the archive using the link below.
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  • Selected titles

    The titles shared by Morton Public Library include “Cauldron” and “Times News Reporter”.

  • 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.

Reporting from the time can reveal how people described the events, work and concerns of their day, placing a local story within the history unfolding around it. Whether you are tracing a family connection, exploring a local event or sharing history with a class, there is more to discover than names and dates alone. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Browse eleven titles and 355,360 digitized pages, with material from 1820 to 2025. This collection is shared through Morton Public Library's partnership with Advantage Archives. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

Every search for the past starts with a question. Explore the titles below, follow the sources that speak to it, and see what new detail appears.

Cauldron

33,768 pages from 1925 to 2024

Courier

2,514 pages from 1995 to 1996

Morton A Pictorial History

482 pages in 1820

Morton Courier

52,026 pages from 1996 to 2025

Morton Pumpkin Festival

62 pages in 2016

Morton Times News

49,426 pages from 1997 to 2014

Tazewell County News

53,186 pages from 1954 to 1973

Tazewell News

124,508 pages from 1974 to 1997

The Morton News

37,196 pages from 1909 to 1953

The Tazewell News

820 pages in 1973

Times News Reporter

1,372 pages from 2019 to 2022

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About the Archive

About The Morton History Archives

The Morton Public Library in Illinois offers free access to a digital archive of historical newspapers and yearbooks, making local history more accessible. The archive includes newspapers from 1909 to 2014 and yearbooks from Morton High School spanning from 1925 to 2017. This comprehensive archive allows users to explore the rich history of Morton and its surrounding areas.

  • The Morton A Pictorial History (1820)
  • The Tazewell News (1973)
  • The Morton News (1909-1953)
  • The Cauldron (1925-2017)
  • The Tazewell County News (1954-1973)
  • The Morton Times-News (1997-2014)
  • The Courier (1995-1996)
  • The Morton Courier (1996-2022)
  • The Tazewell News (1974-1997)
Morton Public Library photo 2

About the Library

About The Morton Public Library

The Morton Public Library, located in Morton, Illinois, serves a dynamic community with a rich history. Established in 1924, the library has grown and evolved to meet the changing needs of its patrons. The library provides a diverse collection of over 160,000 volumes, including ebooks, audiobooks, streaming videos, downloadable magazines, and access to various online resources such as genealogy tools and test preparation materials. In 1979, the library property was purchased its current location on the former Morton Pottery Company property. The building, designed by architect Don Westlake and constructed by Diversified Buildings, Inc., opened in March 1982. An addition was completed in 1998 to accommodate the growing needs of the community.

Morton Public Library photo 1

Library History

The History of The Morton Public Library

The history of Morton Public Library dates back to 1922 when the Sempre Fidelis Club of the Morton Community United Church of Christ campaigned for a library. In 1924, the citizens voted in favor of establishing a public, tax-supported library. The library’s first Board of Trustees was elected in 1925. Over the years, the library occupied various downtown locations before settling into its current building in 1982. Significant developments include the addition of the Morton History Collection in 1998 and the establishment of Hannah’s Reading Garden in 2015. In 2018, the library underwent a major renovation to enhance its facilities, including creating a dedicated young adult area and expanding youth services.

About the Community

About Morton, Illinois

Morton, located in Tazewell County, Illinois, is a community with a rich history and vibrant culture. Known for its pumpkin festival and strong community spirit, Morton has grown from its early beginnings into a thriving town. The area is characterized by its agricultural roots and has developed into a suburban hub with a diverse population. The community’s commitment to preserving its history is evident in the support for the Morton Public Library and its digitization projects. Morton is a place where tradition and progress coexist, offering residents and visitors a glimpse into its storied past while embracing modern advancements.

Morton Public Library photo 3

Local History

Did You Know?

  • The Morton Public Library's current building sits on the former property of the Morton Pottery Company, a significant part of the town's industrial heritage.
  • In 1922, the Sempre Fidelis Club of the Morton Community United Church of Christ initiated the campaign for the library, showcasing the strong community spirit that still exists today.
  • Hannah's Reading Garden, installed in 2015, provides a beautiful outdoor reading space and is named in honor of a long-time library supporter.
  • The library underwent a major renovation in 2018, which included creating a dedicated young adult area and expanding youth services to better serve the community.
  • In 1991, Morton Public Library transitioned from a village library to a district library, allowing it to expand its services and reach more patrons.
Morton Public Library photo 4

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Keep publication context with a finding

A family name, a familiar street or a story passed down through generations can lead to a closer look at the history of Morton. The digital archive shared by the Morton Public Library offers a place to begin. 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. Note the newspaper title, issue date, and page for a useful report. Compare another account where available, and keep differences in timing or perspective visible rather than blending them into a single version.

Save the newspaper title, issue date, and page, then compare another dated account where available. Keep differences in timing and perspective visible so the source context is not lost. If the accounts disagree, record what each source supports and use the difference to shape a further search rather than smoothing them into one version.

A research trail is most useful when it leaves room for what is not yet known. Record the title, date, and page or item reference where available, along with what remains uncertain and which question you want to follow next. Those details help keep a possible connection from becoming an unsupported conclusion.

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Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

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