Amongst the BRHS archives is a unique collection of “hometown newspapers” including the The Tattler, from 1938; The Pelican, published from 1949-1953; and back issues of the Boca Raton News, in circulation since December of 1955. The Boca Raton News is available on microfilm through the Boca Raton Public Library from 1970 on, however, the Historical Society is the only holder of the earlier issues of the News, maintained as bound original copies from late 1955 through 1969. These newspapers represent an invaluable resource on the history of Boca Raton from the 1930s-1960s. They document in great detail the amazing rise of a small farming community, population 700 in the late 1930s, to a rapidly growing city of 28,500 in 1970; home to IBM, FAU, and Arvida. They reveal not only the people, places, and events of our community’s past; they document broader issues such as land development, community segregation and desegregation, the rise of a “youth culture,” fashion trends, and—the price of real estate.

BRHS has digitized this collection in a searchable PDF format. For more information contact the Archives Department at 561-395-6766 or archives@bocahistory.org.

Click here to access hometown newspapers.

Click here for directions on how to search the hometown newspaper collection.