Copyright & Citing Materials

Getting Permission to Use Materials

You must get written permission from the copyright holders and/or other rights holders for:

• Publication in any form, whether modified or not
• Public display in any form, electronic or hard copy
• Use in television, video, or film
• Distribution
• Other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use

You do not need to seek permission to publish for:

• Non-profit educational purposes (class papers, research, classroom use)
• Purposes such as criticism, comment, and news reporting

Archives & Special Collections cannot provide permission to publish or distribute materials when UNC is not the copyright holder.

We will not do research concerning the existence and/or whereabouts of rights holders. To the extent that we provide available information, we do not guarantee the accuracy of such information and will not be responsible for any inaccurate information. We will not fulfill requests for permission.

Finding Copyright Holders

The Society of American Archivists provides further guidance about using copyrighted and unpublished materials.

The U.S. Copyright Office provides information about how to investigate the copyright status of a work.

When you cannot identify or locate the current copyright owner of a copyrighted work, the copyrighted material is sometimes called an “orphan work.”

Columbia University Libraries and the Society of American Archivists provide advice about:

• Documenting your search for a copyright owner
• Using orphan works

Citing Materials

You must properly acknowledge Archives & Special Collections as the source of material that you use.

However, you must not use the name of Archives & Special Collections, the University Libraries, or UNC in any manner that creates any false association between you and the image, materials, the Libraries, and / or UNC, or that incorrectly implies any sponsorship or endorsement by the Libraries, UNC, or any third-party rights holder.

Common Citation Styles

For books and periodicals, you can follow the typical rules of whatever citation style you are using in your work. This will generally be Chicago Manual of Style, MLA, or APA.

If you are using the Chicago Manual of Style, you must include all the elements listed below. You do not have to put them in a particular order, but you must be consistent with the order you choose.

• Author or creator of the collection
• Type of records in the collection
• Date span of the collection
• Manuscript or series number
• Name of holding repository
• Location of holding repository

Formats and Examples

This is the preferred format for citing materials you use in publications:

Description of Item, Collection Name (##), Archives and Special Collections, James A. Michener Library, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado.

Bibliography Citation

Format

[Collection Name, date span]. Collection #. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Examples

• University of Northern Colorado, Building and Grounds collection, 1889-2013. RG015. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.
• 23rd Regiment Michigan Volunteer Infantry order book, 1863-1865. SC010. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Footnote Citation 

Use this format when you are citing content from a particular document.

Format

[Item, date][Box #, Folder #]. [Collection Name, date span]. Collection #. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Examples

• Color photograph of Mari Michener and F. X. Roberts, 1992-1997. Box 1, Folder 2. F. X. Roberts and C. D. Rhine Papers, 1900-1997. JM022. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.
• Doomsday Book Correspondence, 1991. Box 3, Folder 1. Connie Willis papers, 1970-2018. SC059. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Credit Lines for Photograph Materials

Full Citation Format

[Photo caption with date if available]. [Photo Collection Name] [Collection #### (space)Photo Number ###]. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Example

• Bishop-Lehr Hall exterior, aerial view, 1962. School, College, and University Historic Images RG021_01_04_16_0010B. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Brief Citation Format

[Photo caption] [Photo Collection Name] [Collection #### (space)Photo Number ###]. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Example

• Bishop-Lehr Hall exterior, aerial view, 1962. School, College, and University Historic Images. Archives and Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Northern Colorado. Greeley, Colorado.

Contact Us

Please contact us if:

• You have any questions
• You have more information about an item you have seen on our website
• You are the copyright owner and believe our website has not properly attributed your work to you, or has used it without permission

We appreciate receiving a copy of any published work that features our material.