Manchester Evening News Archive: Back Issue Newspapers

If all newspaper suddenly vanished from the earth, historical scholars would find their research sources woefully limited. While textbooks and online encyclopedias provide plenty of information about the past, they rarely give a good sense of a town or period’s personality.  As primary sources of data, drafted in close to real time newspapers provide a sense of life to the sometimes monotonous march of history.  Please be aware, however, that all publications tend to reflect the personality of the times, people, and communities surrounding them. So, unless you read the papers that once drove public opinion, your knowledge of history remains forever half-formed. Cracking open a copy of the Manchester Evening News (MEN) might help you see Greater Manchester, and its history, in a whole new light.

The History of the Manchester Evening News (MEN)

Mitchell Henry first published the MEN in 1868 to bolster his parliamentary campaign. When the election ended,  and the paper had served its purpose, he sold it to the owners of the Manchester Guardian.  The new owners relaunched the MEN,  as the evening counterpart to their other, much larger, paper. Things continued relatively unchanged until the owner of the  Manchester Guardian died in 1907. The papers separated for some time before the new owner of The Guardian, C.P. Scott, repurchased the MEN in the early 1920s. In 2010, after nearly a century together, both papers were sold to Trinity Mirror.

The MEN currently prints in Chadderton with a daily circulation rate of approximately 50,000.

Interesting Facts About the Manchester Evening News

• In a controversial and somewhat ironic move, the Manchester Evening News began publishing a morning edition in 2004.
• The name of the paper’s popular “Football Green” and “Football Pink” editions comes from the color of paper that they originally printed on. These names stuck even after white became the industry standard in the 1970s.
• The Manchester Evening News was launched in the same year that C.H. Gould filed his patent for the office stapler.

How to Access the Manchester Evening News' Archives

To find back issues of Manchester Evening News' or to check availability of the newspaper, follow these steps:

1. Visit the UK historical newspaper archive page.
2. Select the date
3. Choose your desired newspaper and edition.
4. Select the pack you wish to purchase.