How to Create a Citation from a Microfilm Collection

Have you wondered how to create a citation from microfilm reels that you ordered from an archive or library? A Research Like a Pro with DNA Study Group member asked the following question.

I had sent for microfilm records from the Library of Virginia (LVA) through their inter-library lending program and printed out pages and pages of these vital records. I kept all of the documentation, correspondence with the lending library I used, and documentation from LVA that had accompanied the microfilm. I’d like to use this information on the project, but I am unsure how to write the citation.

Copy of Greensville Register of Marriages from the Library of Virginia microfilm

This type of citation is best handled with the layered citation format taught by Elizabeth Shown Mills. In Evidence Explained, Mills demonstrates citations for sources from microfilm (preservation copies). ¹ You would first answer the five questions for source citation of Who, What, When, Where is, and Where in for the physical layer and then for the digital layer.

The completed layered citation has the physical layer in red and the microfilm layer in blue.

Does this citation contain the following criteria for evaluating a citation?

Is it clear?
Is it concise?
Is it consistent?
Is it informative?

This study group member has several citations to create from this microfilm collection and with this basic format in place can now quickly create consistent citations replacing the various pieces of information.