Newspapers & Other News Media

News resources available at UVA

About Researching in Historical Women's Periodicals

Women's periodicals from the 18th through 20th, and even into the 21st, Centuries, offer a window into the lives of those whose experiences, thoughts, opinions, and aspirations were often otherwise undocumented. Research in women's periodicals can help us to understand what society is projecting onto and expecting from women, discover the interests, needs, challenges, and trends experienced by women, and learn about other topics such as food, cooking, housework, advertising, childrearing, and other chores traditionally taken on by women.

Databases for Researching Women's Periodicals

American Periodicals Series (1740-1940)
Full text of over 1000 magazines and journals published in the US between 1740 and 1940.
North American Women's Magazines & Newspapers
These publications include articles, stories, illustrations, advertisements, and social and political commentary on the changing traditional female role, educational opportunities, clothing, leisure time activities, sexuality, courtship, marriage, childbirth, employment, and the women's rights/suffrage movement. Rich with first-hand stories on Women’s and Girl’s issues of the day, including: relationships and experiences of mothers and fathers; wives and husbands, and children; courtship; health and medical care; education; social and familial roles; fashion. Women were essential to the abolition and temperance movements in the 19th century.
Women's Magazine Archive
An archival research resource comprising the backfiles of leading women's interest consumer magazines. Issues are scanned in high-resolution color and feature detailed article-level indexing. Coverage ranges from the late-19th century through to 2005 and these key primary sources permit the examination of the events, trends, and attitudes of this period. Among the research fields served by this material are gender studies, social history, economics/marketing, media, fashion, politics, and popular culture.
Women's Studies Archive: Issues and Identities
Includes the following collections:
- European Women's Periodicals, 1840-1940
- Malthusian, 1879-1921 (formerly Women and the Social Control of Their Bodies)
- Women's Lives
- Women's Labour League: Conference Reports and Journals, 1906-1977
- Committee of Fifteen Records, 1900-1901
- Grassroots Feminist Organizations, Part 1: Boston Area Second Wave Organizations, 1968-1998, Part 2: San Francisco Women's Building / Women's Centers, 1972-1998
- Planned Parenthood Federation of America Records, 1918-1974
- Herstory: Contains women's periodicals from the International Women's History Periodical Archive assembled by the Women's History Research Center. Hard to find journals and newspapers of the women's movement from 1956 to 1974.
- Women and Health/Mental Health
- Women and Law Collection
- Women's International League for Peace and Freedom: United States Section, 1919-1959
- Collected Records of the Woman's Peace Party: 1914-1920
- Records of the Women's Peace Union: 1921-1940
- Women's Trade Union League and Its Leaders.
Independent Voices
Feminist, a section of IV, includes over 75 magazines, newsletters, and newspapers created by activists and collectives that helped propel the second wave of feminism from the late sixties and early seventies through the end of the 20th century. Groups represented by these publications include the Redstockings, New York Radical Women, Chicago Women’s Liberation Union, the Third World Women’s Alliance, and many others. Abortion, rape, unequal pay, women in the service, childcare, women’s self-help, pornography, gender roles, and many other major issues of the period were extensively covered in the pages of the feminist press.

Microform Collections

You can think of microform collections as early databases. These collections brought together books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and primary sources, and you could view them all in the same place - at the time, revolutionary! Even though many microform collections have been replaced by databases, many are still valuable research tools. Microform readers are available in Shannon Library; for help requesting reels or using the machines, email us at library@virginia.edu.

History of Women: A comprehensive collection by and about American and European women from the 1700s through 1920. The microfilm collection consists of books, pamphlets, periodicals, manuscripts and photographs. Included in the collection are resources on topics such as: birth control, education, the professions, women's rights, women's organizations, social reform, and the role of women in the settling of the American West. The History of Women collection is based primarily on works found in the Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America, located at Radcliffe College, and the Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College.
- Request reels from the collection page; view titles in the collection.

Late 20th Century Feminist Periodicals

Ms. (1972-present) American feminist magazine. Also available in microfilm.

Off our backs (1970-2008) Feminist activist newspaper from the US. Also available in microfilm (years spread across 2 sets of microfilm). Also available online in JSTOR, complete with illustrations and photography.

Heresies (1977-1993) Feminist publication on art and politics. Also available online, complete with illustrations and photography.

Spare Rib (1972-1993) British feminist periodical. Also available in microfilm.

Questions féministes (1977-1982) Pioneering French feminist journal, founded by Simone de Beauvoir.

Frauen und Film (1974-1993) German language journal covering feminism and film.

Early 20th Century Women's Periodicals and News

American Ladies Magazine (1828-1836) Edited by Sarah J. Hale, this was the first U.S. women's magazine to last more than five years.

Arthur's Home Magazine (1852-1897) A popular periodical for housewives and children, featuring fashion, light fiction, and verse.

The Forerunner (1909-1916) Written, edited, and published by Charlotte Perkins Gilman; contains fiction, poetry, editorials, and news reports.

Godey's Magazine (continuing Godey's Lady's Book) (1892-1894) A popular, high-circulation magazine that published literary works by all the great writers of the period, with illustrations and engravings. Continuation of Godey's Lady's Book, The Lady's book, American ladies' magazine, Ladies' magazine, and Ladies' magazine and literary gazette.

The Ladies' companion (1834-1844) Well-illustrated, contents include mainly fiction and sentimental poetry. Variant titles: The Ladies' Companion, a Monthly Magazine: Devoted to Literature and the Fine Arts and The Ladies' Companion, and Literary Expositor: a Monthly Magazine Embracing Every Department of Literature.

The Ladies magazine (1792-1793) Also titled Lady's magazine, and repository of entertaining knowledge and Repository of entertaining knowledge. The first U.S. women's magazine, it presented fiction, poetry, and fashion.

The ladies' museum (1829-1832) This magazine attempted to combine household hints with intellectual improvement.

Vanity Fair (1913-1936) U.S. women's fashion magazine. Other years available in microform, print, and online.

Political, Suffrage, and Anti-Suffrage Women's 20th Century Magazines

The Anti-suffragist (1908-1912) Anti-suffrage publication. Later title: The Woman's Protest and Woman Patriot.

Britannia (1912-1918) The organ of the Pankhursts' Women's Social and Political Union, later the Women's Party.

Equal rights: independent feminist weekly (1935-1936) News and articles about the women's rights movement, stressing the achievements of women who succeeded in a man's world.

The Englishwoman's review of social and industrial questions (1866-1910) Concerned with the condition and needs of women, with working-class women, and with women's education.

The Lily: A ladies' journal devoted to temperance and literature (1849-1856) Founded by Amelia Bloomer, this magazine advocated women's rights and dress reform.

The Lowell offering (1840-1845) Published by the female factory employees at the Lowell woolen mills in Massachusetts, offers insight into the labor conditions and the socio-economic problems of the period.

The Revolution (1868-1871) An early women's rights journal, edited by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, among others.

Votes for Women (1907-1915) Until 1912, this journal was the organ of the Pankhursts' Women's Social and Political Union.

Women's penny paper (1888-1890) Edited by the British suffragist Henrietta B. Muller. Index/guide includes list of interviewees, including George Eliot, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Rosa Bonheur. Later title: The Woman's Herald.

The Woman Patriot (1918-1932) "A national newspaper for home and national defense against woman suffrage, feminism and socialism." Microfilm located in 2 sets, and some print issues available in Special Collections. [Print Ald Stacks: JK1903.A2 ?]

The Woman worker (1907-1921) A journal of women's trade unions, arguing for organization and for improvement of working conditions in factories and workshops.

The Woman's column (1892-1904) Published by the American Woman Suffrage Association and edited by Lucy Stone's daughter, Alice S. Blackwell. Only about 70 scattered issues were available for microfilming.

The Woman's herald (1891-1893) Edited by the British suffragist Henrietta B. Muller. Index/guide includes list of interviewees, including George Eliot, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Rosa Bonheur. Previous title: Women's Penny Paper.

The Woman's protest (1912-1918) The official publication of the National Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage. Previous title: The Anti-Suffragist. Later title: Woman Patriot.

Influential Mass-Market American Women's Magazines

Better Homes and Gardens (1922-present)

Essence (1976/1977-1994/1995) Founded in 1970, this popular magazine is devoted to the interests of African American women.

Good housekeeping (1978-1989) Very popular home and family magazine. 1885-1950 available online at the Home Economics Archive.

Ladies' home journal (1884-1971) See also American Periodicals Series Online. Use Advanced Search and limit search to Publication title: Ladies' home journal.

McCall's (1876-2001) Originally published in the 1880s as a dressmaking patterns magazine, it later became a popular home and family magazine. More years available in microfilm.

Redbook (1903-present) Early 20th century available in Special Collections

Vogue (1892-present) Women's fashion and dressmaking magazine. Many issues available in print.