The local newspaper for Peru is the NewsTribune (former newspapers include the Daily Post-Tribune, Daily News-Tribune, La Salle Republican, and the La Salle Daily Tribune). The library has back issues on microfilm or CD-Rom for the years April 1906 to present.
There is not a complete index from 1906 to the current date. However, over the years various groups and invididuals have indexed portions of the newspaper. What indexes that are available are listed below.
The newest index is to John Barron’s newspaper columns, scanned and added March 2022. A popular columnist, John Barrow frequently wrote about local history and/or local residents during the 1970-1980s. Checking this index might provide clues for family and/or local history research.
If you are researching a local resident’s World War 2 miliary history, use the indexes to the annual Victory or Stars and Stripes editions of the Daily Post-Tribune. Each know person (male or female) serving in the armed forces is listed in the three editions.
We purchased a new microfilm machine in April 2019. The Scan Pro3000 allows patrons to save newspaper articles to a flash drive (memory stick), email and/or traditional paper prints. Staff are available to start you with the microfilm machine, a short instructional guide is available at the library and through our website.
Indexes to the News-Tribune
Remember, there is not a single, inclusive index to the various historical newspapers serving the Peru area. The following indexes cover portions of the newspapers. The following newspaper indexes are listed in chronological order by publication date.
- 1888-1890 and 1906-1915 (available in paper only)
- Shadensack Index 1908-1945 (mentions only deaths of Peru residents)
- News Tribune Index February 1916 – Aug 20, 1920 (marriages, births, deaths, and divorces)
- News Tribune Index 21 August 1920 – 18 September 1922 (marriages, births, deaths, and divorces)
- Daily Post-Tribune 1942 Victory Edition (area residents serving in the military)
- Daily Post-Tribune 1943 Stars and Stripes Edition (area residents serving in the military)
- Daily Post-Tribune 1944 Stars and Stripes Editions (area residents serving in the military)
- Daily News-Tribune 1960 Peru 125th Birthday edition
- Daily News-Tribune 1961 Spring Valley 75th Anniversary
- News-Tribune Bicentennial Edition (I) April 29, 1976, and (II) July 1, 1976
- News-Tribune La Salle 125th Birthday Edition (19 July 1977)
- Index for John Barron columns (articles by local columnist, John Barron)
- Index to the News-Tribune, 1983 – July 1997 (indexes names and broad subjects)
- Men in Service 1942 – Indexted by Gregory Brate
- Men in Service 1943 – Indexted by Gregory Brate
Other historical newspapers in our microfilm collection.
The La Salle Genealogy Guild indexed the obituaries from several southeastern La Salle county newspapers; their online obituary index is posted on the Guild’s website.
News-Tribune: A Year in Memoriam
Since 2004, the News-Tribune compiles a yearly listing of area obituaries, providing a starting point when searching for a recent obituary.