Resources

Whether you are new to the Citizen Archivist program, or looking for ways to become more involved, this resource page is designed to provide helpful information, tips and tricks, instructional videos and more.

Learn how to register and get started. 

Need help with your Catalog user account? Contact us at catalog@nara.gov

How-to Guides

Get started, find information, and step-by-step instructions with these downloadable PDFs. 

Transcription Tips

Our Transcription Tips guide includes instructions and examples of documents to help you get started with transcription. A PDF version is available for download.

What Makes A Good Tag?

Tags enhance the National Archives search capabilities. Learn how you can improve access to records by adding tags.

Get Started Transcribing

Learn how to register for a Catalog account, find records to transcribe, and follow step-by-step instructions for transcribing records in the Catalog.

Tagging Game

Learn how to turn tagging in the National Archives Catalog into a game to list as many keywords (Tags) that describe or identify items in the image. This game can be played head-to-head or team-versus-team.

Videos

These instructional videos will help you learn more about making contributions as a Citizen Archivist.

How to Change Your Username

Learn how to change your Catalog username in a few easy steps.

How to Find Pages to Transcribe

Learn how to quickly find untranscribed pages in our Citizen Archivist missions.

Adjusting Records and Contributions Panels

Learn how to resize and move the transcription box and how to enlarge and move the original image.

How to See What You've Contributed to the Catalog

Learn how to see a list of your transcriptions, tags, and comments for reporting or to return to what you worked on earlier.

Have ideas for more resources? What topic should we cover next? Let us know at citizenarchivist@nara.gov

Questions, comments, or feedback? Email us at citizenarchivist@nara.gov