How to share info personally viewed and photocopied at NARA in Washington DC?

Question

In June of 1997 I visited the National Archives in Washington DC and made photocopies and transcriptions of a Revolutionary War pension folder and a Civil War Pension folder for two of my ancestors. I have since scanned the photocopies for my personal use. Many of these records are now available on websites, but my copies are sometimes better than the existing public ones or I haven't found that all of the pages I copied are included in existing paid or public databases. In one case, family Bible pages had been torn out and included in the pension file.

I have searched the NARA website regarding ownership and found that they state all of their files are in the public domain with the exception of some copywritten documents and to refer to the catalog for more information. I am stuck there.

I would like to share and post the information I copied and/or transcribed there but want to respect the usage of those materials.

Thanks for your assistance.

Answer 1

Any document created by the United States government is public domain. Copyright works published before 1923 would be no longer protected. Anything from 1923 onward might be under copyright and it depends on when published and when registered or renewed. Anything from 1978 forward will be under copyright unless there is a release in the catalog or attached to the material you copied. In all cases, give a full source citation for the material.