IF YOU ARE DOING BRIGG FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH, READ ON...

Many people in Brigg and district are researching their family history. Others will be seeking information about topics as diverse as football and transport. If you, friends and family, are among them, here's some exciting news from Lincolnshire County Council...
Three centuries of local news is now available online at Lincolnshire Archives and libraries.
Millions of articles from UK newspapers dating back to 1700 can now be searched for free at the click of a button using the British Newspaper Archive.
The vast online database contains digital versions of newspapers held at the British Library.  The collection is described as one of the finest in the world and includes five of Lincolnshire's most historical newspapers.
The Lincolnshire Echo, Grantham Journal, Lincolnshire Chronicle, Louth and North Lincolnshire Advertiser and Britain's oldest newspaper The Stamford Mercury, as well as more than 220 others from across the UK, are now all just a click away.
Jonathan Platt, head of libraries, says: "Previously, the county's historical newspapers have only been available on microfilm or original print, making it difficult for local researchers to find and look at what they need.  A search of the UK's papers would've required a trip to the British Library in London.  Now, researchers, family historians and history buffs need only log-on at their nearest library.
"Lincolnshire libraries have always collected and preserved local newspapers for current and future generations.  By providing digital access to these valuable resources, we hope to encourage people to explore more of their local and family history.  With all the other free resources available in libraries, The Collection and at Lincolnshire Archives, such as census records, the information about our past is now easier to uncover than ever before."
Full content of the papers is available, including news articles, family notices, letters to the editor, obituaries and advertisements.
The British Newspaper Archive is available from computers or via Wi-Fi in libraries and the Lincolnshire Archives.  Up to 10 people across the network can use it at any one time.  Users don't require their library card to access the service, but will need to register and create an account.
The British Newspaper Archive contains more than 220 historical local newspapers from across the UK, from The Cornishman to The John O' Groat Journal.  It includes the Lincolnshire Echo (from 1893 to 1911), Grantham Journal (from 1854 to 1914), Lincolnshire Chronicle (from 1833 to 1904), Louth and North Lincolnshire Advertiser (from 1859 to 1910), and Britain's oldest newspaper The Stamford Mercury (from 1714 to 1912).
Brigg Blog readers may be unaware that papers in decades and centuries past carried news about towns and villages much further afield than you might think. The much-missed Lincolnshire Times, for example, even in the 1960s, carried news about places well south of Louth. The same well well apply in reverse. So it's worth checking this archive for news of the Brigg area.
We have just put in a request, on behalf of Brigg district people, to see whether Lincolnshire County Council can supply us with a weblink so people in the north of the old county can access the information, rather than driving over to a Lincolnshire library. If one exists we will add it to this post. 

REPLY FROM THE COUNCIL, AUG 29: You can only access the site through computers in Lincolnshire libraries / Lincolnshire Archives. People can find their nearest library by going online to www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/libraries