Transcription Guidelines

Below are general guidelines for transcribing documents from the archive:

  1. Use the zoom buttons to examine documents more closely. You may also pan around the document.
  2. Make sure you preserve any dates contained in a document.
  3. Preserve the spelling of the document, even if words are misspelled.
    • Spelling can be widely variable, even among documents written by the same person.
    • If you cannot make out a word, include “undecipherable” in [brackets].
  4. Preserve punctuation of the document, even if they seem wrong to you.
  5. Represent typographical conventions as much as possible. Capitalization, underlining, and strikethroughs are all important pieces of documentary evidence.
    • Highlight the text and use in the toolbar at the bottom of the editing window to indicate strikethroughs exactly as in the original.
    • Superscripts should be noted by using .
    • To indicate underlined text, you will need to use the <ins> html tag, e.g. <ins>cannon</ins> will display cannon
    • If you can reproduce a symbol using your keyboard, do so. Otherwise make a note describing the symbol in [brackets].
  6. To indicate a paragraph, user two hard returns to leave a line between the paragraphs in the editing window.
  7. Record any marginalia or notes written on the document, including postal notations and administrative notes.
  8. Note any illustrations or charts in [brackets], even though you cannot actually reproduce them.
  9. If the document indicates it is a draft, make sure to note this. Occasionally, you may run into both a draft and a final copy of a document. These are both important. Additionally, include notation in [brackets] of “Private” “Confidential” or “Copy” documents made by the author.
  10. Save your work. You may partially transcribe a document and come back to it later if you wish.
  11. If you have additional information about the document or wish to explain any of your transcription decisions, use the "Discuss this Page" tab to record your notes.
  12. Still confused or unsure? Leave a note for the editors in the Discuss this Page window for the document you are transcribing.