Serially posted historical journals?

May 30, 2012 5:47 PM

Tomorrow, Pepys' Diary, which I've been following as it's been posted serially for the better part of a decade, will post its last entry. Are there any similar serially posted historical diaries that I can I follow in its absence?

For nine years, Phil Gyford has been posting one diary entry a day from Samuel Pepys' diary in "real time" -- same dates, just 300 or so years after Pepys first wrote his entries. It's been a fun ride, but tomorrow is Pepys' last entry and so also the end of the blog.

Are there any other historical blogs or websites that follow this format -- posting a historical diary in a day-to-day format, preferably with an RSS feed? I'm going to miss following Samuel Pepys, and I'm hoping to try to fill the hole with other follow-along historical diaries. Or something in the same vein?

Here's a sort-of similar question asked previously four years ago. I'm more interested in diaries or historical accounts posted daily, rather than available in their entirety, so I can follow along as the events unfold.

posted by sciapod to writing & language (9 answers total)

Not exactly what you are asking for, but do you read Letters of Note? It might satisfy this itch.
posted by Brittanie at 5:55 PM on May 30, 2012

There's Rosalind Sinclair, newlywed Seattle housewife turned Boeing worker during WWII. I think the character is fictional, but the author seems to put in a real effort to make it fit with history. It's on Twitter daily, but the blog is updated a couple of times a month.
posted by asciident at 5:58 PM on May 30, 2012

the Orwell Diaries.

Since 9th August 2008, we have been blogging George Orwell’s diaries from 1938 in real time, 70 years to the day since each entry was originally written. The diaries start as Orwell heads to Morocco (with his wife Eileen) to recuperate from injury and illness, and end in 1942 (or 2012) as the Second World War rages.

currently up to May 30, 1942.
posted by russm at 6:38 PM on May 30, 2012

The Washington Post is "real-time" tweeting the Civil War 150 years after the fact from diary entries, letters, newspaper accounts, and official documents. There are also separate accounts for the Union, the Confederacy, Lincoln, Davis, and various players in the drama (list here), but those aren't necessarily updated daily.
posted by weebil at 7:02 PM on May 30, 2012

Also Civil War, the University of North Carolina is posting documents from their collection for each day of the war.
posted by weebil at 7:11 PM on May 30, 2012

See also Edward Lear.
posted by thomas j wise at 7:44 PM on May 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Check out Daily lit which will at least email you a daily dose of some classic literature. They probably have an RSS version of their content as well.
posted by bendy at 9:01 PM on May 30, 2012

Real Time WWII is "Livetweeting the 2nd World War, as it happens on this date & time in 1940, & for 6 years to come." (This is similar to weebil's link above, different war.)
posted by SisterHavana at 9:50 PM on May 30, 2012

I made this MeFi post some years ago about a blog which has published fifty letters written by Captain Cecil Mainprise, who accompanied General Sir Francis Younghusband's expedition to Tibet in 1903. All done back in 2009, so not sure that fits your daily posting requirements.
posted by Abiezer at 10:39 AM on May 31, 2012