List of African American newspapers in Illinois
Copy editing the Chicago Defender in 1942.
This is a list of African American newspapers in Illinois . To be included, a newspaper should be attested in a reliable source as an African American newspaper published in Illinois. The list is divided by region, and the newspapers attested in each region are placed in alphabetic order by city.
Illinois' first African American newspaper was the Cairo Weekly Gazette , established in 1862. The first in Chicago was The Chicago Conservator , established in 1878. An estimated 190 Black newspapers had been founded in Illinois by 1975, and more have continued to be established in the decades since.
While most such newspapers in Illinois have been local, some like the Chicago-based Chicago Defender and Muhammad Speaks have had a major national circulation and impact. National Black newspaper networks, including the Defender syndicate and Associated Negro Press , have also been headquartered in Chicago.
Northern Illinois
The Chicago Bee Building in Bronzeville , where the Chicago Bee was published.
The Chicago Defender Building in Bronzeville, where the Chicago Defender was published until 1960.
Northern Illinois covers the northern third of Illinois, and is by far the most populous of Illinois' regions. Most of population is concentrated in the Chicago metropolitan area , and most of the region's African American newspapers have likewise been concentrated in and near Chicago.
City
Title
Beginning
End
Frequency
Call numbers
Remarks
Chicago
Abbott's Weekly & Illustrated News
1933
1934
Weekly
Chicago
Advance
1890
1900
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Advocate
1905 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago
African-American Voice / The Voice of the Black Community
1994 (uncertain)
?
Biweekly
Chicago
All About Us
1896
1899
Weekly
Chicago
All Chicago Focus
1990 (uncertain)
1991
Twice monthly
Chicago
A.M.E. Record
1895
?
Weekly
Chicago
Appeal
1885
1926 or 1923
Weekly
Chicago
Aspect
1908
1908
Weekly
Chicago (Austin )
The Austin Voice
1986
?
Biweekly
Chicago (Austin )
The Austin Weekly News
1987
current
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Bee and Sunday Bee
1925
1947
Weekly
Chicago
Bee-Free Speech
1888
1895
Weekly
Chicago
Black Truth
1968
1971 (or later) or 1970
Weekly
Chicago
Black X-Press
1973
1970s[ 11]
Weekly
Chicago
The Broad Ax
1895
1935
Weekly
Moved to Chicago in 1899; published from August 1895 to June 1899 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Chicago
Brotherhood
1890
?
Weekly
Chicago
Bronzeville
1943
?
Weekly
Chicago
Bulletin
1958
1972
Weekly
Chicago
Busy Bee
1896
?
Weekly
Chicago (Chatham )
Chatham-Southeast Citizen / Chatham Citizen
1965
current
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Courier
1938
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Defender
1905
current
Weekly; daily from 1956 to 2008[ 18]
Chicago
Christian Gibraltar
1910
1970
Weekly
Chicago
Christian Science
1895
?
Weekly
Chicago
Chronicle
1918
?
Weekly
Chicago
Church Organ
1893
1898
Weekly
Chicago
Church Record
1895
?
Weekly
Chicago
Citizen
1965
Weekly
Chicago
Clipper
1885
1898
Weekly
Chicago
Conservator
1878
1914
Weekly
Chicago
Courier
1932
1932
Weekly
Chicago
Crusader
1937
?
Weekly
Distinct from the Chicago Crusader that was established 1940 as the New Crusader .
Chicago
New Crusader / The Chicago Crusader
1940
current
Weekly
Chicago
Daily Times
?
?
Daily
Chicago
Dynamite
1936 or 1937
1939
Weekly
Chicago
Eagle
1889
1930
Weekly
Chicago
East Side Monitor
?
?
Weekly
Chicago
Egyptian Sun
?
?
Weekly
Chicago
Enterprise
1918
1931
Weekly
Chicago
Evening World
1919
1919
Daily
Chicago
Fellowship Herald
1916
1916
Weekly
Chicago
The Final Call
1979
current
Twice monthly
Chicago
Free Lance
1895
1926
Weekly
Chicago
Free Speech
1888
1898
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Gazette
1880s?
1890s?
Chicago
The Chicago Gazette
1949 or 1950
current
Weekly
Chicago
1950?[ 26]
Weekly
Circulation of 35,000 in 1951.
Chicago
Hero
1889
1891
Weekly
Chicago
Home Journal
?
?
Weekly
Chicago
Home News
1925
1925
Weekly
Chicago (Hyde Park )
Hyde Park Citizen
1988 (uncertain)
current
Weekly
Chicago
Idea
1900
1918
Weekly
Published by W.D. Neighbors.
Chicago
Illinois Chronicle
1900
1921
Weekly
Chicago
Illinois Idea / The Chicago Illinois Idea / The Chicago Idea [ 30]
1903
1922
Weekly
Chicago
Illinois Political News
1939 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Independent Bulletin
1972 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago
Inquirer
1926
1926
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Journal
1975 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago (Lawndale )
Lawndale Drum
1970 or 1972[ 33]
1979 (uncertain)[ 33]
Weekly
Chicago
Leader
1905
1906
Weekly
Chicago
Messenger
1942
1944
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Metro News (1972–1991) / Chicago-South Suburban News (1968–1972) / South Suburban News (–1968)
1965
1991[ 34]
Weekly
Chicago
Metropolitan News (to 1938) / Metropolitan Post (to 1940)
1935
1940
Weekly
Chicago
Mission Star
1890
?
Weekly
Chicago / Moline
Modern Farmer
1930
1932
Monthly newspaper
Chicago
Monitor
1914
1915
Weekly
Chicago
Muhammad Speaks
1961
1975
Weekly
Chicago
National Aspect
1910
1912
Weekly
Chicago
Negro Champion
1925
1929
Weekly
Chicago
The Negro Spearhead
1968
?
Weekly
Chicago
New Metro News
1992 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago (South Side )
News Clarion / South Side News-Clarion [ 39]
1964
?
Weekly
Chicago
News Ledger
1938
1941
Weekly
Chicago
News Scene
1984 (uncertain)
Twice monthly
Chicago
Observer
1885
?
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Observer
1964
?
Weekly
Chicago
The Owl
1962
1960s
Weekly
Chicago
Pathfinder
?
?
Weekly
Chicago
People's Advocate
1900
1926
Weekly
Chicago
People's Voice
1918
1918
Weekly
Chicago
Plain Dealer
1888
1922
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Reflector
1895 or 1896
1906
Weekly
Chicago
Republican
1888
1889
Weekly
Chicago
Review
1929
1932
Weekly
Chicago
Royal Messenger
1921
1932
Weekly
Chicago
Savoyager
1929
1932
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Scene
1984 (uncertain)
1993
Weekly
Chicago
Search Light or Searchlight
1910
1932
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Shoreland News / Chicago Shoreland
1977 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago
Smith's Arrow Weekly
?
?
Weekly
Chicago
South End Citizen
1965 (uncertain)
current
Weekly
Chicago
The South Shopper
1995
?
Monthly newspaper
Chicago
South Side Bulletin: Chicago’s Progressive Community Weekly / Bulletin
1959 (uncertain)
1972
Weekly
Chicago (South Side )
South Street Journal
1994 (uncertain)
2010s[ 46]
Biweekly
Chicago
South Suburban Citizen
1982 (uncertain)
current
Weekly
Chicago
Southside Digest
1931
1931
Weekly
Chicago
Spokesman
1932
1932
Weekly
Chicago
Standard
1894
1895
Weekly
Chicago
Star
1910
1946
Weekly
Chicago
Sun
1924
1924
Weekly
Chicago
Supreme Liberty Guardian
?
1938
Weekly or twice monthly
Chicago
Today’s Chronicle
1992 or 1996[ 51]
Biweekly
Chicago
Voice
1910
?
Weekly
Chicago
The Voice / Second Ward Voice / The First District Voice (1942)
1940
?
Weekly
Official newspaper of the Second Ward Regular Democratic Organization.
Chicago
Wednesday's Focus
1990
?
Weekly
Chicago
Chicago Weekend
1974 (uncertain)
Weekly
Chicago
Weekly Reporter
1906
1906
Weekly
Chicago
West Side Torch
1969
1969
Weekly
Chicago
Western Opinion
1906
1909
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago Whip
1919
1939
Weekly
Chicago (West Side )
West Side Torch: The People's Paper
1965 (uncertain)
1971 (uncertain)
Biweekly
Chicago or Chicago Heights [ 58]
Tri-City Journal
1978[ 58]
Weekly
Chicago
The Windy City Word
1992 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Chicago (Woodlawn )
Woodlawn Booster / Woodlawn Booster and Bulletin
1932
1973
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago World
1900
1902
Weekly
Chicago
The Chicago World
1918
1953
Weekly
Circulation of 32,000 in 1951.
Chicago Heights
Chicago Standard News
1984
current
Weekly
East Moline
The Common Bond
1975
?
Monthly newspaper
Evanston
Evanston Guide
1929
1932
Weekly
Evanston
Evanston Newsette
1941
?
Weekly
Evanston
Evanston Weekly
1915
1931
Weekly
Evanston
North Shore Examiner
1968 or 1971
1979[ 63]
Weekly, later monthly[ 63] or bimonthly
Harvey
Chicago South Suburban News
1964 or 1966
1972[ 65]
Weekly
Harvey
Suburban Journal
1968
Weekly
Hopkins Park (Pembroke Township )
Pembroke Herald Eagle
1961[ 66] or 1962
1983[ 66]
Weekly
Published by Ozroe Bentley, remembered as "the conscience of a community."[ 66]
Joliet
Voice or Negro Voice (1966)
1950
?
Weekly
Kankakee
Progressive Era
1924
1942
Weekly
Maywood
Suburban Echo-Reporter
1964
?
Weekly
Robbins
Herald
1917
1950
Weekly
Robbins
Informer
1947[ 69] or 1948
1949
Weekly
Rockford
Crusader
1950
1972
Weekly
Rockford
Vital Force
1985
2000s[ 70]
Weekly
Published by George Anne Duckett.[ 70]
Rock Island
Tri City Oracle
1898
1900
Weekly
South Holland
South Suburban Journal
1975 (uncertain)
?
Weekly
Waukegan
North Shore Guardian
1964
?
Weekly
Central Illinois
Central Illinois is the middle third of the state. It includes the state capital Springfield and many other small cities such as Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana, Danville, Decatur, Galesburg and Peoria.
Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois or "Little Egypt" is the southern third of Illinois, and is the state's least populous region. Much of the population is concentrated in Metro East , a five-county region across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri . The state's first African American newspaper was established in Southern Illinois' southernmost town, Cairo , in 1862.
See also
Works cited
Belles, A. Gilbert (September 1975). "The Black Press in Illinois". Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society . 68 (4): 344– 352. JSTOR 40191030 .
Camara, Afi (2013). Pleading Our Own Cause: The Black Press in Springfield Illinois (1886-2013) . Retrieved 2019-12-16 .
Carroll, Fred (2017). Race News: Black Journalists and the Fight for Racial Justice in the Twentieth Century . University of Illinois Press. ISBN 9780252050091 .
Census Bureau (1938). "Negro Newspapers and Periodicals in the United States: 1937" . Negro Statistical Bulletin, Issues 1-17 .
Danky, James Philip; Hady, Maureen E., eds. (1998). African-American newspapers and periodicals : a national bibliography . Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674007888 .
Dolinar, Brian (2013). The Negro in Illinois: The WPA Papers . University of Illinois Press. ISBN 9780252094958 .
Lochard, Metz T. P. (Autumn 1963). "The Negro Press in Illinois". Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society . 56 (3): 570– 591. JSTOR 40190627 .
Mansberger, Floyd; Stratton, Christopher (2018). National Register of Historic Places Thematic Survey of Springfield's African-American Community, And the Central East Neighborhood, Springfield, Illinois (PDF) . Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
Mouser, Bruce L. (2014). A Black Gambler's World of Liquor, Vice, and Presidential Politics: William Thomas Scott of Illinois, 1839–1917 . ISBN 9780299301842 .
Smith, Jessie Carney; Horton, Carrell Peterson, eds. (1995). Historical Statistics of Black America: Media to Vital Statistics . Gale Research. ISBN 0810393921 .
Walker, Juliet E.K. (1996). "The Promised Land: The Chicago Defender and the Black Press in Illinois, 1862-1970". In Suggs, Henry Lewis (ed.). The Black Press in the Middle West, 1865-1985 . Greenwood Press. ISBN 9780313255793 .
References
^ "About Black x-press. (Chicago, Ill.) 1973-197?" . Chronicling America . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
^ Katz, Brigit (2019-07-09). "The 'Chicago Defender,' an Iconic Black Newspaper, to Release Its Last Print Issue" . Smithsonian .
^ Graham, Jefferson. "Legendary Chicago Defender publication to go digital only" . USA Today . Retrieved 2019-12-18 . In 2008, the paper switched back to a weekly circulation.
^ Linda M. Carter (2017). "Leavell, Dorothy R." . Encyclopedia of African American Business (2nd ed.). pp. 479– 481. ISBN 9781440850288 .
^ a b Dawkins, Wayne (1997). Black Journalists: The NABJ Story . August Press LLC. p. 54. ISBN 9780963572042 . They met in 1950 when Jarrett was with the Chicago Globe , a new black newspaper.
^ Illinois Secretary of State (1923). Blue Book of the State of Illinois . p. 138.
^ a b "Title: Lawndale drum" . Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
^ "Chicago Metro News Shuts Down After 25 Years". The Chicago Reporter . June 1991.
^ a b "Council Lends an Ear to Spat of 2 Aldermen" . Chicago Tribune . 1964-05-28. p. 5. Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ "South Street Journal" . Issuu.com . Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ "About Today's chronicle. (Chicago, IL) 1996-current" . Chronicling America . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ Lee, William (2016-09-25). "Longtime owner and publisher of Citizen newspapers dies" . Chicago Tribune . Retrieved 2019-12-17 .
^ a b "About Tri-city journal. (Chicago Heights, Ill.) 1978-current Chicago Heights, Ill. (1978-current)" . Chronicling America . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ a b "Randolph R. Tomlinson Sr" . Legacy.com . Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
^ "About Chicago-south suburban news. [volume] (Harvey, Ill.) 1968-1972" . Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
^ a b c "Pembroke Eagle editor, publisher Ozroe Bentley dies" . Daily Journal . 2004-09-24. Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ "About The Robbins informer. (Robbins, Ill.) 1947-????" . Chronicling America . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2019-12-17 .
^ a b "George Anne Duckett, Obituary" . Rockford Public Library. 2019-05-31. Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ Hawkins, John Russell (1916). "Jameson, Henry Washington" . Centennial Encyclopedia of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Volume 1 . p. 276.
^ "African-American Newspapers in Champaign-Urbana" . eBlackChampaign-Urbana . 2010-06-09. Retrieved 2019-12-15 .
^ Freeman, Huey (2015-08-09). "Horace Livingston Jr. honored with Mueller Park sculpture" . Herald & Review . Retrieved 2019-12-16 .
^ Churchill, Theresa (2014-06-22). "Civil rights activist Horace Livingston Jr. dies at 92" . Herald & Review . Retrieved 2019-12-16 .
^ "Knox aims to uncover 'hidden history' of Galesburg's black community" . The Register-Mail . 2016-02-04. Retrieved 2019-12-19 .
^ "About The Illinois star. (Galesburg, Ill.) 1935-????" . Chronicling America . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2019-12-19 .
^ "The Illinois Star 4 July 1935" . Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections . 1935-07-04. Retrieved 2019-12-20 .
^ a b Fitzgerald, Mark (2007-01-01). "One Black Paper Shatters 'Taboos' " . Editor & Publisher . Retrieved 2019-12-17 .
^ Sherman, Pete (2008-05-31). "Key Figures: E.L. Rogers" . Springfield Journal-Register . Retrieved 2019-12-19 .
^ "Illinois State Informer (newspaper)" . SangamonLink . Sangamon County Historical Society. 2015-10-19. Retrieved 2019-12-17 .
^ Pride, Armistead Scott; Wilson, Clint C. (1997). A History of the Black Press . Howard University Press. p. 230. ISBN 9780882581927 .
^ a b Lancaster, Emmer Martin (1966). A Guide to Negro Marketing Information . U.S. Department of Commerce, Business and Defense Services Administration. p. 38.
^ Hobbs, Allyson (2006). "Guide to the Ben Burns Collection, 1939 - 1999" . Mapping the Stacks: A Guide to Black Chicago's Hidden Archives . Retrieved 2019-12-18 .
^ a b Lord & Thomas and Logan Pocket Directory of the American Press . 1912. p. 128.
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