Transcribe text exactly as it appears.

This includes misspelled words, missing punctuation, and incorrect grammar. If a key term like a name or place is misspelled, you can include the correct spelling in [brackets] following the error. Transcribe everything on the page (dates and addresses, too), with the exception of logos and printed graphics on stationery.

Don't worry about (most) formatting

Alignment and fonts don’t need to be preserved in your transcript. The only formatting we request is that new paragraphs or sections be separated by a blank line in your transcript, and that when the original document starts a new line, you do, too (i.e. hit Enter). This may mean that you only have 5 or 10 words per line—that's fine! If you run into a word broken across two lines with a hyphen, place the full word on the second line of transcription. If a digital image shows two pages of the original object (example here), start the first sentence of the second page on a new line and continue your transcription.

Run into something strange?

Indicate it with [brackets]. This includes writing that goes in a different direction on the page, illegible or torn/missing words, doodles, and other unusual features. Any transcription is better than none, so just do your best!

Why am I transcribing a typed document?

While typed material undergoes OCR (optical character recognition) to create a full text transcript when it's added to Ohio Memory, the resulting text quality can vary depending on many factors. Your assistance in either correcting this text, or creating it from scratch if necessary, will improve the usability of these important items.

All finished?

Save your progress so you or another user can complete the work later if there’s still content on the page to transcribe, or mark the page as complete when you feel you've finished the page. If you have questions or comments, use the Contact Us link at the bottom of the page to email ohiomemory@ohiohistory.org.