An archive of The Kewanee Voice articles dating back to the online news publication’s launch in 2023 can now be accessed through NewsBank, a global news database resource that provides online archives of media publications as reference material to libraries.
Andy Reichert, vice-president of business and media services with NewsBank, announced Tuesday that the project had been completed and that the company had released The Voice’s content in product.
Library patrons, students and residents interested in older articles can now access them through computers at the library’s computer lab. Black Hawk College students can also access the Voice archives through the college’s library.
The process of archiving the online news publication began last year with the hope to preserve Kewanee history for future generations. The project was spearheaded by Board Chair TD Welch with the help of the Kewanee Public Library Director Cynthia Maxwell. But Welch struggled to find a solution to the problem of archiving the digital publication.
The answer came in the form of an email from Reichert, who reached out to the publisher of the Voice offering NewsBank’s services.
The Kewanee Voice board of directors approved entering into a contract with the service and the process of scraping the website’s data began in earnest in November of 2024.
The archiving of the digital site is free and NewsBank pays royalties to the nonprofit when articles are accessed.
“We are pleased that this project, started as a way to ensure the preservation of our city’s history, has been completed and appreciate the work of NewsBank,” said Welch.
