AncestorAdvisor

Free browser tool

Newspaper citation generator

Turn the details of a newspaper discovery into a readable source citation. Choose the kind of copy you inspected, then review the details that still need checking.

Private working space. Your entries stay on this page. This tool makes no archive, AI or analytics requests and does not save your work. Refreshing or closing clears it. Copy buttons use your clipboard only when you click them.

Build a newspaper citation draft

Record what you actually consulted, then copy a flexible genealogy citation draft. Leave unknown details blank. This tool does not verify sources or guarantee an exact named citation style.

Your entries stay in this page. Nothing is uploaded or saved by this tool. Keep a copy before leaving.

What did you consult?

For a digital page, record the newspaper details and the archive's stable page URL, not a search-results URL.

Identifying details

Use details printed on the source or recorded by its archive. Blank fields become explicit gaps, not guessed values.

Include town or city and state, province, or country as recorded.

Use a complete date. Put a partial or uncertain date in Research notes rather than guessing a day.

Use the number printed on the newspaper, not the viewer's image sequence. If the page is unnumbered, say so. Record a scan or image number separately below.

For a physical source, name the repository or collection you consulted. Put call numbers, reel details, or custody history in Research notes.

Only a complete http:// or https:// address is accepted. The tool does not open or check this address.

Optional article and research details
More precise identification

The archive viewer's scan sequence can differ from the printed page. This is cited explicitly as “scan/image”, never as the printed page.

Useful for a digital source. No date is filled in automatically.

Up to 3,000 characters across citation fields, plus up to 2,000 for the URL. Individual fields also have limits.

Ready. Unknown details may be left blank.

Build a newspaper citation another researcher can follow

A clipping can become hard to find once you close the archive viewer. This free newspaper citation generator brings the identifying details together while the page is still open: the newspaper title, publication place, issue date, printed page, item heading and access route. The result stays visible below the form, where you can review it and copy it into your own research notes.

Start by choosing what you actually inspected. A digitized page needs its archive and page link recorded alongside the newspaper details. An original issue or microfilm copy needs a repository or access route. An unidentified clipping needs its uncertainty kept visible. A tidy citation must not disguise missing provenance.

Printed pages and viewer numbers are different

Use the page number printed on the newspaper when you can read it. If the viewer says “image 7 of 12,” record that as a scan or image number, not as printed page 7. A heading, column or section can help locate a short notice. Enter the newspaper publication date, not the date of the birth, marriage or death described in the item.

The completeness checks are prompts to revisit the source, not a quality score. They cannot verify that the title is correct, that a link will remain available or that the notice concerns your ancestor. Unknown details should stay unknown.

What citation style does this use?

This is a practical family-history source-note format. It is not a certified Evidence Explained, Chicago, APA or MLA formatter. If a journal, course or repository requires a particular style, check its instructions and adapt the result. For Chronicling America records, the Library of Congress citation and page-link guide provides collection-specific guidance.

Questions about this citation tool

Can I cite a clipping with no newspaper title or date?

You can record what you have by selecting the unidentified-clipping option. The result keeps the missing source details explicit. Do not borrow a likely newspaper title or date from another record and present it as confirmed.

Does the tool check an archive link?

No. It does not open or fetch the address you enter. Test the page link yourself in the archive and check whether another reader needs a subscription or library login.

Can I keep the result without downloading a file?

Yes. Review the citation on screen and use Copy citation if you want it in your own notes. Nothing is automatically downloaded or saved by this tool. Refreshing or closing the page clears the working form.

For the full evidence workflow, read how to verify and preserve a newspaper discovery.