Let's go back to basics. When we use a document that's posted online, we have two things to cite, each in its own layer
the document
the website that published the document—-sometimes inside a named database and sometimes not
Your struggle, I assume, is within the website layer.
The basic form for citing a website is the same as for citing a book:
Author/Creator, Title of Publication (Publication Data), Specific Item.
Within this framework:
If the website is eponymous (self-named), then we do not have to repeat that name in the creator field.
For books, publication data calls for three things: Place: Publisher, Date. For websites, we need just two of those: Place (URL) and Date.
The Specific Item field at a website that publishes documents is typically one of two things:
the search terms used to locate the document; or
the path > waypoints > image number used to locate the document.
In EE4 or Stripped Bare,
Template 1 provides a pattern for citing a book or a simple website.
Template 5 provides a pattern for citing a complex website that has multiple articles or databases (whether named or not).
Template 10 then demonstrates how to combine a citation to a document (Layer 1) with a citation to the website (Layer 2). It provides two patterns.
when the document is in a named database
when the database has no named
EE 4 has further discussions and examples for "No Named Database" at pp. 147, 150, 196, 198, 217, 257, 298, 311, 324, 329, 346, 368, 376, 377–79, 383–84, 390–91, 396, 406, 427, 441, 450, 551, 557, and 612.
Beyond the above, there is one further complication that is illustrated by mbcross's query of 08/03/2026 (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/node/2446): that is, a need to add a Layer 3 to report what a website tells us about a source, such as where the original record is located.
For this third layer (the "Citing ..." layer in which we report what the website itself cites), the answers to your questions "What should be included?" and "What is sufficient?" will vary from one time to the next. There's no set formula because (a) we can only report what the website tells us; and (b) the essentials depend upon the type of record we're using and the essentials for that type of record.
In mbcross's example, the document is at a website created by the National Archives, where it provides images of documents within NA. That facility (like most state and national archives) has a complex organizational structure in which documents are identified by
Document ID & Date; file; collection; subseries; series; record group; archive name & location.
Thus, the NA website gives us much detail that we need to include in the "Citing ...." layer.
On the other hand, if we're using documents published online by, say, FamilySearch or Ancestry, we may be told very little about where the document is located. Those websites may simply say "County Clerk, Whatever County."
EE4's Chapter 4 "Archives and Artifacts" discusses the organization of material within formal archives, to help researchers understand the essentials for citing their records. See especially §4.1 through 4.5 and 4.10 through 4.12.
EE4's Chapter 12 "National Government Records" does the same for several National Archives internationally. See especially §12.2 and (if needed) the specific country.
Hello, Anonymous. Let's go…
Hello, Anonymous.
Let's go back to basics. When we use a document that's posted online, we have two things to cite, each in its own layer
Your struggle, I assume, is within the website layer.
The basic form for citing a website is the same as for citing a book:
Author/Creator, Title of Publication (Publication Data), Specific Item.
Within this framework:
In EE4 or Stripped Bare,
Template 10 then demonstrates how to combine a citation to a document (Layer 1) with a citation to the website (Layer 2). It provides two patterns.
EE 4 has further discussions and examples for "No Named Database" at pp. 147, 150, 196, 198, 217, 257, 298, 311, 324, 329, 346, 368, 376, 377–79, 383–84, 390–91, 396, 406, 427, 441, 450, 551, 557, and 612.
Does this help?
Elizabeth
Anonymous, Beyond the above…
Anonymous,
Beyond the above, there is one further complication that is illustrated by mbcross's query of 08/03/2026 (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/node/2446): that is, a need to add a Layer 3 to report what a website tells us about a source, such as where the original record is located.
For this third layer (the "Citing ..." layer in which we report what the website itself cites), the answers to your questions "What should be included?" and "What is sufficient?" will vary from one time to the next. There's no set formula because (a) we can only report what the website tells us; and (b) the essentials depend upon the type of record we're using and the essentials for that type of record.
In mbcross's example, the document is at a website created by the National Archives, where it provides images of documents within NA. That facility (like most state and national archives) has a complex organizational structure in which documents are identified by
Document ID & Date; file; collection; subseries; series; record group; archive name & location.
Thus, the NA website gives us much detail that we need to include in the "Citing ...." layer.
On the other hand, if we're using documents published online by, say, FamilySearch or Ancestry, we may be told very little about where the document is located. Those websites may simply say "County Clerk, Whatever County."
EE4's Chapter 4 "Archives and Artifacts" discusses the organization of material within formal archives, to help researchers understand the essentials for citing their records. See especially §4.1 through 4.5 and 4.10 through 4.12.
EE4's Chapter 12 "National Government Records" does the same for several National Archives internationally. See especially §12.2 and (if needed) the specific country.