"When the World Watched Dayton": A Local Perspective on the Dayton Peace Talks

This blog is derived from an exhibit created by the Special Collections & Archives department for the anniversary of the 1995 Dayton Peace Talks.

In the fall of 1995, the United States hosted peace talks in an attempt to end the brutal, three-year conflict in Europe known as the Bosnian War. After much consideration, officials chose Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, as the site for the negotiations. When foreign delegates and the three Balkan presidents—Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia, Alija Izetbegovic of Bosnia, and Franjo Tudjman of Croatia—landed at Wright-Patt on October 31, they brought the world’s attention with them. 

From the start, international media outlets set up in Dayton to cover the high-stakes talks. While many around the world had never heard of this Midwestern city, local journalists were ready to do what they did best: report on Dayton. For two and a half weeks, the area’s newspapers were filled with history, analysis, and commentary on the war and the unfolding negotiations—all with a distinctly local perspective.

This exhibit presents a selection of front pages from the Dayton Daily News from that historic period and asks, what happens when global events touch down in our own backyard?

When the presidents reached an agreement and initialed the Dayton Accords on November 21, Dayton Daily News photographer Jan Underwood was there to document it. She also captured behind-the-scenes activities of the press, allowing us to peer into the fast-paced world of 1990s journalism.

Credits: The newspapers in this exhibit are held in the Dayton: A Peace Process Collection (MS-411). The images taken by Jan Underwood are from the Dayton Daily News Archive (MS-458). Please contact the Wright State University Special Collections & Archives with questions or requests: library-archives@wright.edu.