About the Project
Photo: “Chester Sumner Wilson and Ruth Moody Wilson at front porch of home, 654 South Broadway, Stillwater; Chester reading newspaper.” Approximately 1900. Photographer Frank T. Wilson. Provided by the Minnesota Historical Society.
We’re collaborating to make decades of historic Stillwater and Washington County newspapers available to everyone.
It’s sometimes said that newspapers are the first draft of history. For Washington County communities, that first draft is now much easier to access. Today, the partner organizations of the Stillwater Area Historic Newspaper Initiative announce the successful completion of its second project in 2025 and the start of a third project in 2026.
During 2025, the project digitized 90,000 additional pages, with a total of more than 323,000 pages of Washington County newspapers now available on the Minnesota Historical Society’s free Digital Newspaper Hub. The 2025 project was made possible by grants from the Fred C. & Katherine B. Andersen Foundation and Hugh J. Andersen Foundation.
In 2026, the project continues with digitization of the Stillwater Gazette from 1947 through 1977, made possible by a donation from former Stillwater residents Terry and Roxie Johnson.
A final project phase, envisioned for 2027, would digitize all remaining Washington County newspapers through 1977.
The project is a collaboration of the Stillwater Public Library, Stillwater Public Library Foundation, Washington County Historical Society, and Minnesota Historical Society.
Approximately 66,000 additional pages will be added each month through December 2026.
Donations and grants will enable future phases of the project, resulting in the digitization of other newspapers from Stillwater and other Washington County communities. Interested donors should contact the Stillwater Public Library Foundation, splf@stillwaterlibraryfoundation.org.