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How to Cite Archives and Manuscripts Citing unpublished documents in archives and manuscript collections, or in other repositories (including someone’s attic), often calls for good judgment, using some basic rules. It is helpful, of course, if the repository in which you are doing research has some established practices for citing its collections. An archivist may be able to hand you a style sheet for citations, or lacking that, be able to advise you on form of citation. Some repositories will not be able to provide such guidance, however, and even where it is available, you’re likely to run across items no one knows exactly how to cite. That’s where judgment, and cognizance of some common-sense rules, comes in. In general you need to answer two questions. 1. What is the source? 2. Where is it? Simple enough. The difficulty is in the details. The first part—what is the item—seems straightforward, but there are many different types of unpublished documents, some of which (such as letters) have no titles. The second part—where is the item—includes both the repository holding the item (that comes last in the note) and where within the repository the item is located. This means providing reference to a collection, or a record group, or a file. Here is where the advice of the archivist or curator can be valuable. Archivists like to see their records cited correctly. So just ask the archivist, "How do I cite these records in my notes?" When all else fails, go back to first principles and use good judgment, remembering the basic rule that the reader should be able to track down the source you cite. Here are some examples of citations to archival and manuscript material.
Now for some short-form, subsequent citations.
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