There’s an intoxicating new superpower for discovering more forgotten details about the Women’s Club’s past members and activities:  Digitized editions of the Montclair Times, 1877- 2018, on Newspapers.com (access through paid subscription).

This is a huge improvement over pre-digital days. The Montclair Public Library holds microfilms of the Montclair Times, but without an index, it is challenging, and time-consuming, to find that one specific thing.

Keyword searching makes this task incredibly fast, and fascinating. It’s especially useful for learning more about the people and activities who passed through the club over the decades.  Entering a search term into Newspapers.com often yields success on the first try — for example, an obituary that gives not only a club member’s full name, but interesting biographical details.  Then too, the Montclair Times frequently covered speakers and events at the club, and these long-ago articles can be wonderful for filling in long-lost details and context.

I’m looking forward to more adventures in vintage newspaper-land.