Rhode Island Online Historical Newspapers Summary

Rhode Island is one of the states that does not have a single central online state repository for searching historical newspapers, nor do they use the Library of Congress Chronicling America site as their main site for searching old newspapers. There are some free online newspapers on other sites and collections available on subscription sites. Below is a list of where the titles are stored and the link so that you can access them. 

There are about 750 newspapers that have been published in the Ocean State – certainly not all of them are searchable online. But there are several that are indeed available. So go for it – find your Rhode Island ancestors and all the interesting articles that capture the stories of their lives. 

Please note that I have not always entered the dates that are included in the collections, as I suspect they will change as more items are digitized. Also, I suspect that some of these links may change over time – so if there is a dead link – please use your favorite search engine to find their new location. 

(Updated February 2023; recently added links are in BOLD)

Rhode Island Historical Newspapers

Free Sites:

Statewide Collections:

Chronicling America – Rhode Island

• Newport [R.I.], 1777-1779 – The Newport gazette. [volume]
• Newport, R.I., 1801-1806 – Rhode-Island Republican. [volume]
• Newport, R.I., 1809-1841 – The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume]
• Newport, R.I., 1830-1846 – Herald of the times. [volume]
• Newport, R.I., 1846-1849 – Herald of the times, and Rhode Islander. [volume]
• Newport, R.I., 1849-1856 – Herald of the times. [volume]
• Olneyville [Providence, R.I.], 1887-1917 – The Olneyville times.
• Providence [R.I.], 1834-1834 – Rhode-Island constitutionalist. [volume]
• Providence [R.I.], 1891-1906 – The Providence news.
• Providence, R.I., 1826-1827 – Literary cadet, and Saturday evening bulletin. [volume]
• Providence, R.I., 1827-1829 – Literary cadet and Rhode-Island statesman. [volume]
• Providence, R.I., 1852-185? – The Pioneer and woman’s advocate.
• Providence, R.I., 1893-189? – The Olneyville tribune.
• Providence, R.I., 1906-1909 – The news-democrat.
• Warren [R.I.], 1826-1830 – Northern star, and Warren and Bristol gazette. [volume]
• Warren, R.I., 1830-1834 – The Northern star, and farmers’ and mechanics’ advocate. [volume]
• Warren, R.I., 1834-1837 – The Northern star, and constitutionalist. [volume]
• Warren, R.I., 1837-1849 – The Northern star, and farmers’ and mechanics’ advocate. [volume]
• Warren, R.I., 1849-1855 – The Northern star. [volume]
• Warren, R.I., 1857-1861 – Warren telegraph. [volume]
• Westerly, R.I., 1851-1851 – The literary echo.
• Westerly, R.I., 1851-1854 – The Literary echo, and Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume]
• Westerly, R.I., 1854-1858 – The Westerly echo, & Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume]

Google News Archive

• Hope Valley – Hope Valley Advertiser
• Newport – Weekly Companion and the Commercial Centinel
• Newport – Rhode-Island Republican
• Newport – The Guardian of Liberty
• Olneyville – Providence County Times
• Pawtucket – Pawtucket Evening Tribune
• Pawtucket – Evening Tribune 
• Pawtucket – Pawtucket Tribune
• Phenix – Pawtuxet Valley Gleaner
• Providence – The American Journal
• Providence – The Evening Tribune and Telegram
• Providence – Manufacturers’& Farmers’ Journal
• Providence – The Providence Journal
• Providence – Manufacturers and Farmers Journal
• Providence – The Morning Star
• Providence – Evening Telegram 
• Providence – Sunday Telegram
• Providence – The News-Tribune
• Providence – The Providence Evening Press
• Providence – The News-Democrat
• Providence – The Providence Sunday Star
• Providence – Providencer Anzeiger
• Providence – Providence Morning Herald
• Providence – The Morning Herald
• Providence – The Impartial Observer
• Providence – Providence Daily Post
• Providence – Corbett’s Herald
• Providence – Providence News
• Providence – The Providence Morning Star
• Providence – The Providence Gazette
• Providence – The Providence Gazette and Country Journal
• Providence – The Sunday Tribune
• Warren – Bristol County Register
• Woonsocket – La Cloche du Dimanche
• Woonsocket – La Tribune de Woonsocket

County and Library Collections:

Bristol County
The Bristol Phoenix 

• Bristol Phoenix
• Bristol Phenix
• The Phoenix
• Bristol Gazette and Family Companion
• Bristol Gazette

Kent County
East Greenwich Free Library 

• Rhode Island Pendulum
• Warwick Beacon
• East Greenwich Pendulum
• The Weekly Pendulum
• The Rhode Island Pendulum 

West Warwick Public Library

• Pawtuxet Valley Gleaner

Newport County
Jamestown Philomenian Library 

• Jamestown Press
• The Jamestown Press

Providence County
Cranston Public Library

• Cranston City Times
• Cranston Herald
• Cranston Herald News
• Cranston Herald Today
• Cranston Leader
• Cranston News
• Cranston Today
• Herald News
• Howard Times
• Neighborhood News
• The Bridge
• The Cranston Critic
• Cranston Mirror
• Hammonds Floral Friend and Household Journal

Pawtucket Public Library

• Pawtucket Times
• Evening Times
• Pawtucket Evening Times
• The Pawtucket Times
• Gazette and Chronicle
• Pawtucket Chronicle and Manufacturers and Artizans Advocate
• Pawtucket Chronicle and Rhode Island and Massachusetts Register
• Pawtucket Gazette and Chronicle

Woonsocket Harris Public Library

• Providence County Times
• The Evening Call
• The Evening Reporter
• The Woonsocket Call And Evening Reporter

Washington County
Maury Loontjens Memorial Library 

• Narragansett Times

North Kingstown Library

• Standard Times
• Timeout
• Standard
• Wickford Standard
• The Standard-Times
• Time Out
• North Kingstown Standard
• Wickford Village Fair News
• The Westerly News and Rhode Island Telephone

Island Free Library

• Block Island Fly 
• Block Island Hooter 
• Block Island Newsletter 
• Way It Is
• Block Island
• Block Island Reporter 
• Block Island Times 
• Ebb Tide 
• Manisses Journal 
• Ocean View 
• The Block Island Times
• The Works

South Kingstown Library

• Narragansett Times
• Narragansett Times and Washington County Advertiser

Westerly Public Library

• The Westerly Daily Sun

Student Collections:

Brown University – Providence

• Brown Daily Herald 
• Pembroke Record

Bryant University – Smithfield

• ​Bryant Archway
• Bryant-Stratton News – Voice of the Student 
• The Booster

Community College of Rhode Island – Warwick

• News

Johnson and Wales University – Providence

• Campus Herald

Naval War College – Newport

• Naval War College Review
• Faculty, Staff, and Student News

New England Institute of Technology – East Greenwich

• News

Providence College – Providence

• Accent
• Black and White
• Congress Connect
• History Alive
• Scholarly Friar
• Student Voice
• The Cowl
• The Entropy
• The Free Press
• The Misinformer
• What on Earth

Rhode Island College – Providence

• Anchor
• The Anchor

Rhode Island School of Design – Providence

• Mixed Media
• Your Name Here
• Juice
• RISD Voice
• Incorporated Press, Inc
• Express-O
• RISD press
• Montage
• RISD Rag

Roger Williams University – Bristol

• Hawk’s Eye
• Hawk’s Herald
• The Messenger
• The Quill

Salve Regina University – Newport

• Ebb Tide
• Nautilus

University of Rhode Island – Kingston

• The Good 5 Cent Cigar
• Black Gold
• The Beacon
• The Beacon
• The Summer Beacon

Miscellaneous Collections and Indexes:

Independent Voices – Alternative Newspapers

• All hands abandon ship
• Joglars

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Newspapers 1933-1942

• Fort Adams – Sad Day (Company 150)
• Pawtuxet – Nooseneck Tattler (Company 195)
• West Glocester – Washingtonian (Company 142)
• Westerly – Burlingame Beacon (Company 141)
• Westerly – Wa-Hoo (Company 141)

Old Fulton Postcards

• Greenwitch RI Northern Star
• Newport RI Gazette
• Newport RI Herald
• Newport RI Herald Times
• Providence RI Cadet
• Providence RI Nothern Star
• Warren RI Nothern Star
• Warren RI Telegraph
• Westerly RI Pawcatuck

Newspaper Abstracts – Rhode Island

For Obituary Indexes, transcriptions, and other death/obituary information from historic newspapers, please check out the Obituaries page.

Other Free Sites:

Newport

• Newport Daily News
• French Gazette 
• Gazette Francoise 

Pawtuxet Village

• The Bridge

Providence

• Christian Telescope
• Christian Telescope and Universalist Miscellany
• Rhode Island Catholic

Subscription or Pay Sites:

Ancestry.com:

There are currently 25 publications available on this site. See all the titles at Ancestry – Rhode Island Newspapers

Genealogy Bank:

There are currently 96 publications available on this site. See all the titles at Genealogy Bank – Rhode Island Newspapers

Newspaper Archive:

There are currently 16 publications available on this site. See all the titles at Newspaper Archive – Rhode Island

Newspapers.com:

There are currently 14 publications available on this site. See all the titles at Newspapers.com – Rhode Island. 

And Finally:

You also need to visit the Rhode Island Historical Society site, which can tell you what is occurring in the state with regard to newspaper projects. The Brown University and Providence College libraries are also good sites to visit.

Please note – even more may be available via a local library where a library card is required. And of course, there is always microfilm for those that have not been made available online as yet.

For more links for different states, provinces, and countries – please see the Newspaper Links page on this website.