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The 19th century British Library Newspapers website will offer one million pages from 46 19th century newspapers, unlocking a rich seam of hidden treasures.

The British Library, in partnership with JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee) and Gale/Cengage Learning, today launches its 19th century British Library Newspapers website. The UK's Further and Higher Education communities will enjoy free online access to a cross section of 19th century national and regional titles, greatly enhancing research into the society, culture and history of the UK between 1800-1900. HE and FE lecturers will be able to download material from the website and use it for teaching purposes.

For the first time, iconic historical events that shaped our present will be fully searchable online. Vital newspaper reports on the Congress of Vienna, the Slavery Abolition Act and the opening of the Suez Canal will become accessible from researchers' desktops. Users will be able to read and repurpose the factual reporting of the Battle of Trafalgar in the Examiner and the gory details of the Whitechapel murders in the melodramatic Illustrated Police News. Some of the most famous authors of the 19th century are represented, including Dickens and Thackeray.

The 19th century British Library Newspapers website, developed by Gale/Cengage Learning will enable users to search material previously only available in London-based reading rooms. Employing new imaging techniques, the website offers its users highly illustrated materials on topics as diverse as business and sport, politics and entertainment. The collection will focus on London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism.

The newspapers have been chosen by leading experts and academics to present a cross section of national and regional titles by making one million pages searchable online. However, it should be noted that present-day leading national papers, including The Guardian, the London Times, The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail are not part of this collection. It is anticipated that the newspaper publishers will follow the lead of the London Times and invest in the technology needed to create their own digital archives.

Sir Colin Lucas, Chairman of the British Library, commenting on the launch of the 19th century British Library Newspapers website, stated: "Research by UK communities relies on access to the very best publications and information sources for its survival. The creation of the 19th century British Library Newspapers website, through partnership between JISC, Gale/Cengage Learning and the British Library, has created a vital online research tool providing the very best resources for the UK's Higher and Further Education communities."

Professor Sir Ron Cooke, Chair of JISC, welcomed the launch of the 19th century British Library Newspapers website: "This is a highly impressive resource which amply demonstrates the power of the web to inform, educate and delight. It will be of immense value to a great many people in a range of subject disciplines and JISC is delighted to have worked closely with the British Library to produce such a fascinating and groundbreaking resource."

Brandon Nordin, VP Publisher Digital Collections Gale, added: "We are delighted and honoured that the British Library selected us as partners in this exciting venture. This project strengthens our position as leaders in newspapers digitisation. Moreover, it allows us to offer an essential research tool for the study of British history and culture at crucial period of the nation's development as a world power."

For full details about the 19th century British Library Newspapers website, visit http://newspapers.bl.uk/blcs/

The 19th century British Library Newspapers website's initial one million pages of content will grow thanks to funding from JISC. The newspapers website is one element of a £22 million JISC programme to digitise a critical mass of resources, including sound, film, journals, pamphlets, images, government and parliamentary papers, maps and cartoons and make them available to further and higher education. As part of this programme, the British Library has worked with JISC to digitise 4000 hours of recordings from its Sound Archive and make this historic material similarly available via the web at http://sounds.bl.uk/

For further information please contact Lawrence Christensen in the British Library Press Office on 020 7412 7114 or email Lawrence.Christensen@bl.uk

Philip Pothen, JISC press office (telephone +44 (0)20 3006 6049 or 07887 564 006) or p.pothen@jisc.ac.uk

Louise Peto, Gale/Cengage Learning (telephone +44 (0)20 8339 7430) or louise.peto@livewirepr.com

Notes for editors

1. The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. It provides world class information services to the academic, business, research and scientific communities and offers unparalleled access to the world's largest and most comprehensive research collection. The British Library's collections include 150 million items from every era of written human history beginning with Chinese oracle bones dating from 300 BC, right up to the latest e-journals. Further information and a full list of the newspapers titles and publications included in the 19th century British Library Newspapers website can be found at http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelprestype/news/newspdigproj/database/index.html
2. JISC - the Joint Information Systems Committee - is responsible for supporting the innovative use of information and communication technology (ICT) to support learning, teaching, and research.  It is best known for providing the JANET network, a range of support, content and advisory services, and a portfolio of high-quality resources.  Information about JISC, its services and programmes can be found at www.jisc.ac.uk/, or contact Philip Pothen on 020 7848 2935 / 07887 564 006 or p.pothen@jisc.ac.uk.
3. Gale - part of Cengage Learning (formerly Thomson Learning) - is the largest and most respected publisher in the world of reference databases and digital primary source collections for the library and education markets. Gale's Digital Collections, which include Eighteenth Century Collections Online, The Times Digital Archive and The Making of the Modern World, have set the standards for large-scale, fully text-searchable archival databases. Cengage Learning provides a technical solution enabling colleges, universities, reference centres, government agencies, corporations and professionals to access this wealth of popular and professional reading materials online.
4. Gale/Cengage Learning's digital archives now include almost 75 million pages of primary source material in over 10 languages, dating from 1450 to 2003. Newspapers, journals, books, documents and handwritten manuscripts are soon to be cross searchable on a completely new platform, to be released by Gale in 2008. Gale's products are sold and supported through Cengage Learning offices worldwide.