Manuscripts and archival material


You may need to consult more than one section of Re:cite to accurately represent the source used. Your citation may look different depending on the number of authors it has. Check the About Chicago B page for further advice.


When citing items from manuscript or archival collections (such as letters), the item itself is usually cited in the footnotes, while the collection itself is the focus of the bibliography entry. However, if only one item from a collection is cited, the item may be included in the bibliography.

In-text citation example

(Collection Title Date)

In-text citation example

In Stanley Bruce's letter to Robert Menzies dated 1 May 1934 (Papers of Robert Menzies) he discussed…. 

Stanley Bruce's letter (Papers of Robert Menzies 1934) discussed...

Reference list

Reference list template

Letter writer (Surname, Given Name) to Recipient (Given Name Surname). Date. Name of collection. Identification number / shelf mark. Holding institution.

Name of collection. Identification number / shelf mark. Holding institution.

Reference list example/s

Bruce, Stanley Melbourne to Robert Menzies. 1 May 1934. Papers of Robert Menzies. MS 4936/1/5/38. National Library of Australia.

Papers of Robert Menzies. MS 4936. National Library of Australia.

Tips for this reference type

  • If the item is a letter or other similar form, the name of the writer appears first, followed by the word to, and then the name of the recipient.  14.126
  • For examples of other types of papers or manuscripts, refer to the Manual 14.127 and 14.128.
  • Dates of individual items should be mentioned in the text, when applicable. When mentioning dates in the text, it is not necessary to add the date along with the collection title in parentheses.
  • Bibliography entries may be listed by the name of the collection or the name of the author (see 14.128).
  • Well- known institutions don’t require location information to be given, however, the city of the institution may be given at the end of the citation (Manual 14.125).
  • See extra information on unpublished material in manuscript collections (see 14.119–29).

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)