Archival document: how to cite in APA (7th ed.)?

Create a spot-on reference in APA 7 and 6

Select a source type:

Book Website Journal article Video (online)

Archival document Blog post Book Book chapter Complete reference Conference paper Copyright certificate Court case Dictionary Dictionary entry Disc Dissertation / Thesis Encyclopedia Encyclopedia article Extended abstract of dissertation Image Journal article Law / Act Newspaper article Patent Podcast Preprint Press release Religious text Report Social media post Software Standard Video (online) Video game Website

Basic rules

To cite an archival document or other materials contained in an archive in a list of references in accordance with the requirements of APA Style (7th edition), the following data should be included in the reference: name(s) of the author(s) (if applicable), document title, name of collection, document location data, name of archive, as well as city and country of the archive.

How to cite in a bibliography

Basic reference template:

Author(s). (Date). Document title. Name of Collection (Document location), Name of Archive, City, Country.

The data on a document's location in the archive can include its call number, folder, box, etc. All data necessary for retrieving the document from the archive should be cited in the reference.

For a document that does not have a title (which may be the case of letters), state its description in square brackets and without italics in place of the title:

Author(s). (Date). [Document description]. Name of Collection (Document location), Name of Archive, City, Country.

Examples of references

Hinds, B. (1964). Collision in the Arctic. Barbara Hinds fonds, MS-2-130 (Box 16, Folder 1), Dalhousie University Archives, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

[Anonymous letter to Chief Hanson]. (1977, February 22). Seattle Fire Department Central Files, 2801-03 (Box 11, Folder 4), Seattle Municipal Archives, Seattle, WA, United States.