The Northern New York Historical Newspapers website has hit another milestone with the addition of over two million pages.

In the six years the site has been in existence, over 50 newspaper titles and 2.2 million pages have been added to news.nnyln.net

The two millionth page is part of the 226,924 pages of the Ogdensburg Advance, with a run from 1857-1962, that was recently added. The site also includes the Ogdensburg Advance and Ogdensburg Advance News from 1861-1862, and Ogdensburg St. Lawrence Republican from 1827-1916.

The Waddington Recorder, from April 1894 - November 1896; the Waddington Pioneer of December 15, 1878; and the Waddington Reporter of September 10, 1879 have also just been added to the historical newspapers site. They total 413 pages.

The Northern New York Historical Newspapers are provided by the Northern New York Library Network based in Potsdam, to enhance access to the regionís unique local history.

“We are fortunate to have been able to scan and index another million newspaper pages two years after the first million were done,” said NNYLN Systems Administrator Thomas Blauvelt. “The original newspapers were preserved by libraries and then microfilmed during the last half of the twentieth century. Within the last few years technology has allowed us to make those images more widely available on the Internet, making them easier to access and view.

“None of this would be possible without the foresight and investment that libraries have made over the years,” he continued. “We thank our library partners and the publishers for allowing us to make this material more widely available.”

Ogdensburg Public Library Director Wayne Miller noted the NNY Historical Newspapers site is a primary source for research. “Reaching two million pages is an enormity more than which most people can fathom,” he said.

“Two million of anything is impressive, but to have scanned that amount and made it available for our scarcely populated region, where else in the country has such a resource been made available?” he stated. “Libraries and historical societies are lobbying to have their papers placed higher on the to-do list.”

“As an economic development tool, this is one way the Ogdensburg Public Library helps the community in contributing to heritage tourism. We assist people from all over the world. We can trace families to Ogdensburg and St. Lawrence County through this tool,” Miller said.

He said once people begin the research it “whets their appetite” and they come to the area to visit. “Nationally, genealogical research is a major form of tourism.”

Ogdensburg Public Library Archivist Linda Marshall pointed out it used to take her hours in front of a microfilm machine to find what she was looking for, but the historical newspapers site has reduced that work to a fraction.

“I’m on the site daily,” she said. “It is such a time saver. I don’t have enough words to say how great it is. It is invaluable.”

Marshall said the original newspapers can no longer be handled as they are falling apart, and the mold on them was being released into the air and onto her skin and eyes when she worked with them. She no longer has to deal with such conditions. She also passes along the web site link to researchers and tells them tips and tricks as to how to use the site.

There are currently 18 newspapers from St. Lawrence County available on the NNY Historical Newspapers website. Titles from other counties include Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and Oswego.