The notes-bibliography method employs footnotes or endnotes along with a bibliography organized in alphabetical order. Often your instructor or publisher will specify whether they prefer that you use footnotes or endnotes.
Citing Sources in the Text
Notes come at the bottom of each page, separated from the text with a typed line, 1 and 1/2 inches long. Some instructors will allow you to (or prefer that you) place notes, instead, as endnotes on a separate page (titled Notes) at the end of your paper, after any appendices. To acknowledge a source in your paper, place a superscript number (raised slightly above the line) immediately after the end punctuation of a sentence containing the quotation, paraphrase, or summary–as, for example, at the end of this sentence.1 Do not put any punctuation after the number.
In the footnote or endnote itself, use the same number, but do not raise or superscript it; put a period and one space after the number. The first line of each note is indented five spaces from the left margin. Publishers often prefer notes to be double spaced.
If a single paragraph of your paper contains several references from the same author, it is permissible to use one number after the last quotation, paraphrase, or summary to indicate the source for all of the material used in that paragraph.
Generally, there is no need to use the abbreviations “p.” and “pp.” before page numbers; simply list the appropriate numbers as the last piece of information in the note.
What follows is a sample set of footnotes/endnotes. Please notice the order of the items in each note as well as the punctuation. The first time a work is cited, full information is given (author, title, volume, publication information, page, etc.).
Sample Notes (First References)
Book by a Single Author, First Edition
Steven Nadler, A Book Forged in Hell: Spinoza’s Scandalous Treatise and the Birth of the Secular Age (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2011), 8.
Author First name Last name, Book title (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Book by a Singe Author, Later Edition
Paul S. Boyer, Purity in Print: Book Censorship in America from the Gilded Age to the Computer Age, 2nd ed. (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2002), 24.
Author First name Middle initial. Last name, Book title, number ed. (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Book by a Single Author, Reprinted
Leonora Neville, Authority in Byzantine Provincial Society, 950-1100 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004; repr., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008), 101.
Author First name Last name, Book title (Original publisher city: Original publisher, original year; repr., Reprint publisher city, Reprint publisher, reprint year), page number.
Book by Two Authors
Gerald Marwell and Pamela Oliver, The Critical Mass in Collective Action (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007), 104.
First author first name Last name and Second author first name Last name, Book title (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Book by Three Authors
Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck, Mastering the Art of French Cooking (New York: Knopf, 1961), 23.
First author first name Last name, Second author first name Last name, and Third author first name Last name, Book title (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Book by More Than Three Authors
Anne Ellen Geller et al., The Everyday Writing Center (Logan, UT: Utah State University Press, 2007), 52.
First author first name Last name et al., Book title (Publisher city, State initials: Publisher, year), page number.
An Anthology with no Known Author
O: A Presidential Novel, (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2011), 3.
Anthology title, (Publisher city: Publisher, year) page number.
[If the author of an anonymously published book has been revealed, you can put that name in brackets at the beginning of the note. If the author is unknown but a particular writer is strongly suspected, you can put a question mark after the bracketed name.]
Book with Organization as Author
Central Intelligence Agency, CIA World Factbook (Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2009), 64.
Organization name, Book title (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
[Since the CIA is the organization that both authored and published this book, it is referenced twice in this citation.]
An Anthology with Editors in Place of Authors
Henry Louis Gates and Nellie Y. McKay, eds., The Norton Anthology of African American Literature (New York: Norton, 1997), 172.
First editor first name Middle name Last name and Second editor first name Middle initial. Last name, eds., Anthology title (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Chapter in an Edited Collection
Colleen Dunlavy, “Why Did American Businesses Get So Big?” in Major Problems in American Business History, ed. Regina Blaszczyk and Philip Scranton (New York: Houghton-Mifflin, 2006), 260.
Chapter Author First name Last name, “Chapter title” in Edited collection title, ed. First editor first name Last name and Second editor first name Last name (Publisher city: Publisher, year), page number.
Article in a Journal
Raúl Sánchez, “Outside the Text: Retheorizing Empiricism and Identity,” College English 74 (2012): 243.
Author First name Last name, “Article title,” Journal title volume number (year): page number.
[If a journal continues pagination across issues in a volume, you do NOT need to include the issue #.]
Book Review
Nancy Rose Marshall, review of Joseph Crawhill, 1861-1913: One of the Glasgow Boys, by Vivian Hamilton, Victorian Studies 42 (1999/2000): 359.
Reviewer first name Middle name Last name, review of Reviewed work, by Author of reviewed work first name Last name, Journal in which review appears volume number (year): page number.
Newspaper Article
Tyler Marshall, “200th Birthday of Grimms Celebrated,” Los Angeles Times, March 15, 1985, sec. 1A.
Article author first name Last name, “Article title,” Newspaper name, Month day, year, sec. number.
[Since prominent newspapers may have several different daily or regional editions, you don’t need to include the page number in this note.]
Encyclopedia Entry
- John Morris-Jones, “Wales,” in Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed. (1911), 260.
- Author of entry first name Last name, “Title of entry,” in Encyclopedia title, number ed. (year), page number.
- Wikipedia, s.v. “Charles R. Van Hise,” last modified April 30, 2018, 15:21, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_R._Van_Hise.
- Encyclopedia name, s.v. “Title of entry,” last modified Month day, year, hour:minute, url.
[“s.v.” is an abbreviation of “sub verbo” which is Latin for “under the word”]
Interview by Writer of Research Paper
Richard Davidson, interview by author, Madison, WI, April 20, 2012.
Interviewee first name Last name, interview by Interviewer name, City, State initials, Month day, year of interview.
[Bibliographies only rarely include entries for personal interviews.]
Secondary Source
Coie et al., “The Science of Prevention: A Conceptual Framework and Some Directions for a National Research Program,” American Psychologist 48 (1993): 1022, quoted in Mark T. Greenberg, Celene Domitrovich, and Brian Bumbarger, “The Prevention of Mental Disorders in School-Age Children: Current State of the Field,” Prevention and Treatment 4 (2001): 5.
First author Last name et al., “Title of secondary source,” Journal containing secondary source volume number (year): page number, quoted in First author firt name Middle initial. Last name, Second author First name Last name, and Third author First name Last name, “Title of Primary source,” Journal containing primary source volume number (year): page number.
[This indicates that you found the Coie et al. information in the Greenberg, Domitrovich, and Bumbarger article, not in the original article by Coie et al. In the bibliography, you would only cite the Greenberg, Domitrovich, and Bumbarger text.]
Performances
William Shakespeare, Othello, dir. Mark Clements, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Milwaukee, April 20, 2012.
Author of work performed, Title, dir. Director First name Last name, Performing company, City of performance, Month day, year of performance.
[Live performances are not usually included in bibliographies. This is because, unless it has been recorded, a live performance cannot be located and reviewed by the reader.]
A Dissertation
Sara M. Lindberg, “Gender-Role Identity Development During Adolescence: Individual, Familial, and Social Contextual Predictors of Gender Intensification” (Ph.D. diss., University of Wisconsin- Madison, 2008), 24.
Dissertation author first name Middle initial. Last name, “Dissertation title” (Ph. D. diss, University, year), page number.
Class Lecture
Morris Young, “What Is Asian American? What is Asian American Literature?” (lecture, Survey of Asian American Literature, University of Wisconsin-Madison, January 22, 2013).
Lecturer First name Last name, “Lecture title.” (lecture, Course title, University, Month day, year of lecture).
Paper Presented at a Conference
Mary Louise Roberts, “The Public Practice of History in and for a Digital Age” (paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, New Orleans, January 3, 2013).
Author first name Middle name Last name, “Paper title” (paper presented at the Conference, Conference city, Month day, year of presentation).
Government Documents
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-148, 124 Stat. 794 (2010).
Document title, Pub. L. No. numbers, volume number Stat. number (year).
Notes: Pub. L. is an abbreviation for “public law.” Stat. is an abbreviation for “statue.”
A DVD
Steven Soderbergh, dir., Che: Part One, (2008; New York: IFC Films), DVD.
Director first name Last name, dir., DVD Title, (year of release; City of production: Producer), DVD.
An Online Source That is Identical to a Print Source
Lee Palmer Wandel, “Setting the Lutheran Eucharist,” Journal of Early Modern History 17 (1998): 133-34, doi: 10.1163/157006598X00135.
Author First name Middle name Last name, “Article title,” Journal titler: volume number (year): page numbers, doi: number.
[The Chicago Manual recommends including a DOI (digital object identifier) or a URL to indicate that you consulted this source online. If there’s a DOI, you should use that rather than a URL. If there is no DOI, use the URL, including “http://.” There’s no need to include an access date if the online source includes a publication or revision date.]
An Online Newspaper
Kirk Johnson, “Health Care Is Spread Thin on Alaskan Frontier,” New York Times, May 28, 2013, https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/29/us/health-care-in-vast-alaska-frontier-is-spread-thin.html.\
Article author first name Last name, “Title of article,” Newspaper, Month day, year issued.
A Website
“Human Rights,” The United Nations, accessed August 5, 2018, http://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/human-rights/.
“Title of webpage,” Website moderator, Month day, year of access, url.
[If a website has a publication or revision date, use that instead of an accessed date.]
Sample Notes (Second or Subsequent References)
When a source is used a second time, its reference is given in a shorter form. The Chicago Manual and Turabian suggest two ways to shorten second references. Either plan is acceptable, but you must remain consistent throughout your paper.
Method A: Shortened Form
For the second and all subsequent references to a work, use an abbreviated form. If the work and the author remain the same and if you are using only one book or article by that author, simply give the author’s last name and page reference. The following example has been shortened from the full information provided in note #3 above:
- Neville, 92.
If, however, you are using two or more works by that author, you must indicate which of the works you are citing. Use the last name, a shortened title, and page reference. The following example is shortened from the full information provided in note #1 above:
- Nadler, A Book Forged in Hell, 121.
If you use two authors with the same last name, give the full name in the shortened reference.
Method B: Latin Abbreviations
When referring to the same work as in the citation immediately preceding, use the abbreviation “Ibid.” for the second reference. “Ibid.” is an abbreviation for the Latin word “ibidem” which means “in the same place.” The abbreviation “Ibid.” is followed by a page number if the page from which the second reference is taken is different from the first. If the pages are the same, no number is necessary. As an example, here is how you would cite the first reference to a work:
- Eliza G. Wilkins, The Delphic Maxims in Literature (Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Co., 1929), 12.
If you continue drawing from the same page of the same source, your next reference would look like this:
- Ibid.
If you continue drawing from the same source but the information comes from a different page, then your note would look like this:
- Ibid., 13.
Citing Sources at the End of the Text
The bibliography (as it is called in the note-bibliography system) is placed at the end of your paper, is a double-spaced alphabetized list of books, articles, and other sources used in writing the paper. This list provides all of the information someone would need to locate the source you’re referencing. (NOTE: This list titled “Bibliography” in the note-bibliography system and “References” in the author-date system. Otherwise, both follow the same format.)
The bibliographic form differs from notes in these ways:
- Sources are alphabetized. The author’s last name appears first (Smith, Betty) in a bibliography.
- While notes use commas and parentheses to separate items, a bibliography uses periods.
- While notes use two spaces after a period, a bibliography uses only one space after a period.
- While notes usually indicate specific pages from which you took information; a bibliography lists entire books or a complete chapter to which you referred.
- The first line of a bibliographic entry begins at the left margin and all the other lines are indented 1/2”. This is called a “hanging indent.”
If the author’s name or the title (or other item) is missing, simply go on to the next item as it should appear. When alphabetizing, use the author’s last name for your entry; if it is not given, simply go on to the next item in order (the title of the book or article, for example) and use that to alphabetize the entry.
A sample bibliography follows. Notice the form and order of the entries as well as the punctuation and arrangement within the entries. The sourced referenced are the same as those used in the notes citations above.
Bibliography
Boyer, Paul S. Purity in Print: Book Censorship in America from the Gilded Age to the Computer Age. 2nd ed. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2002.
Author last name, First name Middle initial. Book title, number ed. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Central Intelligence Agency. CIA World Factbook. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2009.
Organization name, Book title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Child, Julia, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck. Mastering the Art of French Cooking. New York: Knopf, 1961.
First author last name First name, Second author first name Last name, and Third author first name Last name. Book title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Dunlavy, Colleen. “Social Conceptions of the Corporation: Insights from the History of Shareholder Voting Rights.” Wash. And Lee L. Rev 63 (2006a): 1347-1388.
Author last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal title volume number (year published): page numbers.
—. “Why Did American Businesses Get So Big?” In Major Problems in American Business History, edited by Regina Blaszczyk and Philip Scranton, 257-63. New York: Houghton-Mifflin, 2006b.
–. “Chapter title.” In Edited collection title, edited by First editor first name Last name and Second editor first name Last name, page numbers. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Note: –. is used when the author is the same as the citation above.
Gates, Henry Louis, and Nellie Y. McKay, eds. The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. New York: Norton, 1997.
First editor last name, First name Middle name, and Second editor first name Middle initial. Last name, eds., Anthology title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Geller, Anne Ellen, Michele Eodice, Frankie Condon, Meg Carroll, and Elizabeth H. Boquet. The Everyday Writing Center. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press, 2007.
First author last name, First name Middle name, Second author First name Last name, Third author First name Last name, Fourth author First name Last name, and Fifth author First name Middle initial. Last name. Book title. Publisher city, State initials: Publisher, year.
Greenberg, Mark T., Celene Domitrovich, and Brian Bumbarger. “The Prevention of Mental Disorders in School-Age Children: Current State of the Field.” Prevention and Treatment 4 (2001): 1-62.
First author last name, First name Middle initial., Second author first name Last name, and Third author first name, Last name. “Article title.” Journal title Volume number (year): page numbers.
Johnson, Kirk. “Health Care Is Spread Thin on Alaskan Frontier.” New York Times, May 28, 2013. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/29/us/health-care-in-vast-alaska-frontier-is-spread-thin.html.
Article author last name, First name. “Title of article,” Newspaper, Month day, year issued. Url.
Lindberg, Sara M. “Gender-Role Identity Development During Adolescence: Individual, Familial, and Social Contextual Predictors of Gender Intensification.” Ph.D. diss., University of Wisconsin- Madison, 2008.
Dissertation author last name, First name Middle initial. “Dissertation title.” Ph. D. diss, University, year.
Marshall, Nancy Rose. Review of Joseph Crawhill, 1861-1913, One of the Glasgow Boys, by Vivian Hamilton. Victorian Studies 42 (1999/2000): 358-60.
Reviewer last name, First name Middle name. Review of Reviewed work, by Author of reviewed work first name Last name, Journal in which review appears volume number (year): page number.
Marshall, Tyler. “200th Birthday of Grimms Celebrated.” Los Angeles Times, 15 March 1985, sec. 1A.
Article author Last name, First name. “Article title.” Newspaper name, day Month year, sec. number.
Marwell, Gerald, and Pamela Oliver. The Critical Mass in Collective Action. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
First author last name, First name, and Second author first name Last name. Book title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Morris-Jones, John. “Wales.” In Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed. 29 vols. New York: Encyclopedia Britannica Corporation, 1911. 258-70.
Author of entry Last name, First name, “Title of entry.” In Encyclopedia title, number ed. Number vols. City: Publisher, year. pages.
Nadler, Steven. A Book Forged in Hell: Spinoza’s Scandalous Treatise and the Birth of the Secular Age. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2011.
Author last name, First name. Book title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Neville, Leonora. Authority in Byzantine Provincial Society, 950-1100. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004. Reprinted. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Author Last name, First name. Book title. Original publisher city: Original publisher, original year. Reprinted. Reprint publisher city: Reprint publisher, reprint year.
O: A Presidential Novel. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2011.
Anthology title. Publisher city: Publisher, year.
Sánchez, Raúl. “Outside the Text: Retheorizing Empiricism and Identity.” College English 74 (2012): 234-46.
Author Last name, First name. “Article title,” Journal title volume number (year): page number.
Soderbergh, Steven, dir. Che: Part One. 2008; New York: IFC Films. DVD.
Director Last name, First name, dir. DVD Title, Year of release; City of production: Producer. DVD.
United Nations. “Human Rights.” Accessed August 5, 2018. http://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/human-rights/.
Website moderator. “Title of webpage.” Accessed Month day, year of access. Url.
Wandel, Lee Palmer. “Setting the Lutheran Eucharist.” Journal of Early Modern History 17 (1998): 124-55. doi: 10.1163/157006598X00135.
Author Last name, First name Middle name. “Article title.” Journal title volume number (year): page numbers. doi: number.
Wikipedia. S.v. “Charles R. Van Hise.” Last modified April 30, 2018, 15:21, http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Charles_R._Van_Hise.
Encyclopedia name. S.v. “Title of entry.” Last modified Month day, year, hour:minute, url.
Young, Morris. “What Is Asian American? What is Asian American Literature?” Lecture at University of Wisconsin-Madison, January 22, 2013.
Lecturer last name, First name. “Lecture title.” Lecture at University, Month day, year of lecture.
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