Researching in Archives: Citation of Archives

Citation of archives

Citing archives used in research correctly is important not only for good scholarly practice in supporting your argument and crediting your sources, but also for other researchers attempting to locate the records you have used. An archival record is usually unpublished and is just one item in a series of items created or maintained by an agency or person. References to archival records differ from other types of published material.

Correct citations provide a guide to the origin as well as the location of the records. Citation for an archival record should refer to the institution holding the record, the series number of the record series to which the record belongs, and the control symbol (or item number).

Elements of a full citation:

A full citation is recommended for the first footnote or endnote to a source.

  • Institution holding the records - eg. Australian National University
  • The organisation or person who created the records: some examples are the Australian Agricultural Company, the Australian Council of Trade Unions, the Waterside Workers Federation, Tom and Mary Wright, the ANU History Project, and Professor Leslie Melville.
  • Reference number: depending on the records you have used, this may be a series of numerals with or without an alphabetical prefix. The correct reference numbers are important because without them you may be referring to hundreds of metres of material. Some examples are: N21-278, 78-1-13, Z267 Box 12, and ANUA 53 14.1.0.17(2). Note that the box number is only used where there is no item reference number.
  • Description of records: a group of records may be described, such as Secretary's files, Minutes of meetings, or Transcripts of oral history interviews, and then a specific item or document title with its date, eg Despatch from the General Superintendent in NSW to the Court of Directors London, 12 October 1832, or Transcript of interview with Emeritus Professor Geoffrey Sawer, May-June 1990.

All items held in an  Archive follow the same format for citations.

Example of a full citation:
Noel Butlin Archives Centre, Australian National University: Australian Council of Trade Unions, N21-278, Minutes of meeting of metal trades unions, 24 October 1962

 

Example of brief citation:
For subsequent footnotes or endnotes, citations can be abbreviated but the full reference number should be included:

NBAC: ACTU, N21-278, minutes of metal trades meeting, 24 Oct 1962

Example of a citation:

Victoria University Archives: VUS 617, Aerial photograph of Footscray Park campus of Footscray Institute of Technology, A&H Gibbs, c. 1965

 

Bibliographies:
Full citations are recommended for bibliographies under the general heading 'Archival sources' or similar, then arranged by archives institution. Where a group of records has been extensively used, the bibliographic reference may refer to the whole record group or series rather than the individual items, but reference numbers should be included.

 

Credit: ANU Citations of Archives

NAA Citing Archival Records

Copyright and acknowledging the source of a photograph

It is the user's responsibility to ensure you have permission to reproduce a photograph. Photographs taken in Australia before 1 January 1955 are out of copyright. Users should check to see if photographs taken after that date are still in copyright.

Refer to the VU Copyright for Researchers guide for more copyright advice. 

For further information on Copyright relating to archives, please visit NAA Copyright.

Useful guides