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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Rochester Public Library

Rochester, New Hampshire

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

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3Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1864 to 2005Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

243,220Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Rochester, New Hampshire.

Explore the past of Rochester, New Hampshire through newspapers in the Rochester Public Library's digital archive. Its three titles include material from 1864 to 2005.

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

    The collection from Rochester Public Library includes “Rochester Courier” and “The Dover Times”.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • A closer look

    Newspaper pages connect individual accounts with a wider story, preserving how events were reported and presented to the readers of the day.

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 three titles and 243,220 digitized pages, with material from 1864 to 2005. This collection is shared through Rochester Public Library's partnership with Advantage Archives. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

Explore the titles below for a closer look at the places, people and everyday life of earlier generations.

Rochester Courier

199,960 pages from 1864 to 1993

Rochester Times

42,984 pages from 1993 to 2005

The Dover Times

276 pages in 1999

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About the Archive

About the Rochester Public Library's History Archives

The Rochester Public Library offers free access to historical resources through its digital archives, provided in partnership with Advantage Archives . The Rochester Public Library has digitized thousands of pages from the Rochester Courier , capturing the city’s rich history and making it available for public exploration.

Rochester Public Library photo 1

About the Library

About the Rochester Public Library

The Rochester Public Library serves as a cornerstone of the community by offering resources, services, and programs that meet the educational, cultural, and recreational needs of its patrons. With dedicated departments for children's services, adult services, and reference services, the library strives to support lifelong learning and intellectual growth for all.

Library History

The History of the Rochester Public Library

Founded to support the educational and cultural needs of Rochester residents, the library has evolved to provide a wide range of services and materials. It continues to grow as a vital community hub for information and enrichment.

About the Community

About Rochester, New Hampshire

Rochester is a vibrant city in New Hampshire known for its deep historical roots and strong community spirit. With a rich cultural heritage and a focus on education, the city provides its residents with access to quality public services, including its beloved public library.

Local History

Did You Know?

  • The Rochester Public Library plays an integral role in preserving the town’s history and fostering a love of learning across generations.

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Trace a name across nearby issues

A family name, a familiar street or a story passed down through generations can lead to a closer look at the history of Rochester. The digital archive shared by the Rochester 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.

If a name does not appear, try an alternate spelling or a related term, then read around any match. Note the issue date and page so a result stays connected to its context. Use those details to follow a story without treating one search result as a complete answer.

Build a trail through the past that someone else can follow: record the title, date, page or item reference, and a link when available. Keep historical quotations distinct from your own interpretation. If accounts disagree, note what each source supports before deciding how the details fit together in a family or community story.

Review collection titles

Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

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