Why bother with local newspapers?
The value of much of the early 19th century newspapers often lies in the adverts. Newspapers have long derived their primary source of income from advertising. It was common for the adverts to be place prominently on the front page for maximum impact. The Dundee Courier has given up this practice only in recent memory, while the Arbroath Herald is one of the Angus newspapers to retain this tradition. The dependence on advertising is reflected in the occurrence of the title ’Advertiser’ in many newspaper titles. The adverts provide us with a rich primary source for many diverse subjects such as cultural, economic and transport history. Recurrent themes amongst the adverts are property adverts for tenancies of farms, sale of house and tenders to build schools or farm buildings. New businesses announced their commencement in the local press, while established ones promoted new products or services. Adverts provide a rich flavour of the goods and services open to the inhabitants of a town.
