A lot has happened over the past 100 years to say the least. Electric cars are becoming more common on our streets and cell phones have grown and morphed since my earliest memories of them in 2005!! With so much history to remember and learn about, it can be very scary to try and learn more or even know where to start. One cool tool available at the library, or in your own home, is New York Times: 1851-2017 (historical) database.
(To find it without the link, go to the “Research” tab at the top of www.tulsalibrary.org, then select “Databases” and “N” – find the New York Times database link. If you are not at a library, you will need to enter your last name and library card number to access.)
The idea of reading 166 years’ worth of newspaper articles sounds like an endless task! Instead, when you are exploring historical happenings with your students or children, it’s much easier to pick a day, like, say, October 20th, and browse the articles from five, 10, 50, and even 100 years ago in the New York Times database.
When we look at October 20th, we can find out what cool things happened on that date five, 10, 50, & 100 years ago.
Here are a few fun things I found…
On 10/20/2016, The Smithsonian was fundraising to save a beloved pair of ruby slippers featured in the book “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” written by Frank L Baum in 1900 and made into the iconic film in 1939.
On 10/20/2011, School kids were getting a lesson in technology from the Paleolithic and Neolithic ages! The “high tech” items of those ages were fires, boomerangs, and sharp rocks.
On 10/20/1971, children in the New York area had a section of the newspaper featuring children’s activities around town such as plays like “Pinocchio” and “Hansel and Gretel.” Also, it wouldn’t be fall without a movie showing of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!”
On 10/20/1921 Brooklyn joined the other boroughs of New York City! This is important because the Brooklyn Public Library became available to the citizens of the neighboring boroughs. Even in 1921, the Brooklyn Public Library was large with 30 branch libraries, four stations, and 10 deposit stations located all around Brooklyn.
Happy researching!
- Steven Hulford, Youth Librarian, Broken Arrow Library
This ad from 1971 shows the groovy fashions in an advertisement in The New York Times!
