Toledo Blade
Access to the Toledo Blade is available in a few different formats depending on what time period you are looking to access. Please be aware that the full run of the Blade has not been digitized and available online, and there is no way to do a simple keyword search across the entire historical archive.
Obituary Index
The Library has created an index of obituaries from all major Toledo-area papers and continues to update it as new issues of the Toledo Blade are published. If you find a person you are searching for, we can email a scan of the obit to you. Out-of-state residents are charged $3 per obituary scan.
When using the tool, it is recommended to use less search terms rather than try and be comprehensive. Start with just first name and last name and try an initial search, adding terms to narrow things down if you get an overwhelming number of responses. Search terms will have to match what has been listed in the index, so if a nickname is searched but the obituary used a full name, it might indicate a failed search by displaying zero results.
Look Up Obituaries
Microfilm: 1835 to the present
The entirety of the Toledo Blade is available on microfilm in the Local History and Genealogy department on the 3rd floor of Main Library in downtown Toledo. This is the most comprehensive version of the Toledo Blade that is available, and the method needed to be used for most historical research. The time period specifically covers:
Toledo Blade Dec. 19, 1835; May 16, 1837-current
Newsbank: 1996 to the present
Newsbank is one of the databases that the Library subscribes to, and one which can be accessed from home. The look and feel of a newspaper is not replicated here, nor are all articles from a specific issue made available. However this is the largest time period of the Blade that is accessible from home.
Access Newsbank
Newsbank: 2019 to the present
Newsbank also offers an option to see the full and complete newspaper as it was laid out its print version, but only from 2019 to the present. This access is again available from home with new issues available on the same day of publication.
Access Newsbank
Blade Website: recent news
Available while inside any Library location (but not available to be used from home), it is also possible to access the Toledo Blade's website using the Library's subscription. This requires a username and password to access, and is not designed necessarily for historical research, but instead up to the minute news reporting. When prompted to login:
Username: newspaper@toledolibrary.org
Password: blade2020