Historical Newspaper Resources
The Eyewitness to History web site is a good place to get ideas and facts for your Historical Newspaper research. After you know what event you're going to cover, you may search the web for more information if you need to. Don't forget to save some pictures for your newspaper (at least two).
Suggested events:
- The Assassination of Julius Ceasar
- The Destruction of Pompeii
- The Great Fire of London
- The British Surrender at Yorktown
- The First Shot of the Civil War
- The Death of President Lincoln
- The Death of Billy the Kid
- The Sinking of the Titanic
- Entering King Tut's Tomb
- Lindbergh Flies the Atlantic
- Babe Ruth Hits his 60th Home Run
- Attack at Pearl Harbor
- The Battle of Midway
- The Bombing of Hiroshima
- The Assassination of President Kennedy
- Apollo 8 - First Voyage to the Moon
Tips for writing like a newspaper reporter:
- Other than the masthead, the font should be Times or Times New Roman, no larger than 12. Headlines can be size 14. (Did you know that the font Times New Roman was originally designed for a newpaper - the London Times? It really is a newspaper font!)
- Indent each paragraph with a tab. Do not put blank lines between paragraphs.
- Do not write your interview in question and answer form. This is a news story, not a script. See the worksheet for an example.
- Do not write a concluding paragraph or sentence. Don't thank the reader. Just stop when you've told the whole story.
- Newspapers don't say "This just in..." - that's a radio or TV line.
- Don't use exclamations! Or multiple exclamations!!! Your news is exciting all on its own.
