HARTFORD — The Connecticut State Library announces that the three historically significant newspaper titles chosen to be digitized in collaboration with the National Digital Newspaper Program have been completed and are now available online through the Library of Congress' newspaper site Chronicling America.

The titles include New Haven's Morning Journal and Courier, from 1880 to 1908; The Newtown Bee, from 1887 to 1908; and The Waterbury Evening Democrat, from 1877 to 1909.

(Issues of The Newtown Bee, from 1877 to 1909, along with an essay about the newspaper, are found at the Chronicling America website.)

The new newspapers extend the time period and the areas already covered by other Chronicling America newspapers (Bridgeport Evening Farmer and Norwich Bulletin 1909-1922).

The New Haven and Waterbury newspapers have contrasting editorial outlooks, one Democrat and one Republican.

The Newtown Bee is an independent small town newspaper with substantial coverage of the news of surrounding towns. All of the newspapers include local news from nearby towns, increasing the geographic reach of the selected newspapers.

The digitization of these newspaper titles has been made possible due to an award, the second received, from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Additional titles are being chosen as part of a third award from the NEH.

State Librarian Kendall Wiggin noted, "The addition of these titles to Chronicling America provides historians and anyone interested in Connecticut history with a fascinating glimpse in rural and urban Connecticut at a time of great change in our state."

Wiggin went on to say that "given the current budget situation, the State Library would not be able to undertake such an important and ambitious project if it weren't for the grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities."

The State Library also created the Newspapers of Connecticut project [http://is.gd/Oy4T68], a website the has runs of approximately 90 titles from 1821 to 1947 and includes more than 7,000 issues from 39 towns.

The Connecticut State Library, which includes the State Archives and the Museum of Connecticut History, contains extensive collections documenting the history of Connecticut and its families. The library is an Executive Branch agency of the State of Connecticut that provides a variety of library, information, archival, public records, museum, and administrative services to citizens of Connecticut, and employees and officials of all three branches of State government.

The library is open, free to the public, Tuesday through Friday, 9 to 5 and Saturday from 9 to 2. Located at 231 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, it can be reached by calling 860-757-6500.

The Museum of Connecticut History is open Monday through Friday 9 to 4 and Saturday from 9 to 2. Visit the State Library at ctstatelibrary.org.

The Connecticut Digital Newspaper Project has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor. The National Digital Newspaper Program grants support the creation of a national, digital resource of historically significant newspapers published between 1836 and 1922, from all states and US territories. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this database do not necessarily represent those of The National Endowment for the Humanities.