How to Write Footnotes

1


A footnote is reference located at the bottom of the page that refers to a specific part of
the text on the page. A footnote allows the reader to find the reference within the text without
having to go to the end of paper. Endnotes are footnotes that are placed at the end of the paper
instead of the bottom of each page. Endnotes are formatted in the same way footnotes are. This
guide covers how to format footnotes.

Note Numbers

Within the paper the footnote number should be typed slightly above the line
(
superscript
). The numbers should continue in numerical order beginning with 1. Only
numbers should be used, 2a for example, is not acceptable, and no numbers should be
omitted. The footnote number should follow any punctuation mark and go outside of a
closing parenthesis.
N Where should the footnote number be placed?
1

N The footnote number should follow any punctuation mark.
1

N (The footnote number should go outside of a closing parenthesis.)
1


The footnote number should follow the passage it refers to. If possible, it should
come at the end of the sentence, or at least at the end of a clause. The footnote reference
itself is placed at the bottom of the page in numerical order below a short rule or line
separating the body of the text from the footnotes. (See bottom of this page for an
example.)
To save space and improve the appearance of the page, a single paragraph with
several footnotes can be replaced with one footnote at the end of the paragraph. At the
bottom of the page the single footnote can list the several references together in secession
with each entry separate by a semi-colon (;).

Footnotes

Books
Single Author

1
Author's First and Last Name, Title and Subtitle (Place of Publication: Name of
Publishing Agency, Date of Publication), Page Number(s).

1
Theodore H. M. Prudon, Preservation of Modern Architecture, (Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley,
2008), 28.



Two Authors

1
Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th ed. (Chicago: The
University of Chicago Press, 1996), 116-164, 187-213.


2
Author's First and Last Name and Author's First and Last Name, Title and Subtitle
(Place of Publication: Name of Publishing Agency, Date of Publication), Page Number(s).

2
James Ambrose and Patrick Tripeny, Simplified Design of Wood Structures. (Hoboken,
N.J.: Wiley, 2009), 50-51.


No Author

3
Title and Subtitle (Place of Publication: Name of Publishing Agency, Date of
Publication), Page Number(s).

3
The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago: University Of Chicago Press, 2003), 477-485.

Editor as "Author"

4
Author's First and Last Name, Editor (ed.), Translator (trans,) or Compiler (comp), Title
and Subtitle (Place of Publication: Name of Publishing Agency, Date of Publication), Page
Number(s).

4
Paige Rense (ed.), American Interiors : Architectural Digest Presents a Decade of
Imaginative Residential Design (New York: Viking Press, 1978), 10.

Edition other than the First

5
Author's First and Last Name, Title and Subtitle, Number or Name of edition (Place of
Publication: Name of Publishing Agency, Date of Publication), Page Number(s).

5
Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th
ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1996), 116.


Articles
Article in a Journal

6
Author's First and Last Name, "Title of Article," Title of Journal Volume Number, Issue
Number (Publication Date): Page Number(s).

6
Elie Haddad. "Charles Jencks and the Historiography of Post-Modernism," The Journal
of Architecture 14, no. 4 (August 2009): 493-510.


Article in a Magazine

7
Author's First and Last Name, "Title of Article," Title of Magazine, Publication Date,
Page Numbers.

7
Jeff Turrentine, "Natural Sympathies, A Dramatic Dwelling Adapts to its Coastal
Setting," Architectural Digest, August 2009, 78-83.

Newspapers

8
Author's First and Last Name, "Title of Article," Name of the Newspaper, Publication
Date, Edition of Paper, Section Number or Letter, Page Number(s).

8
Ingrid Steffensen, "The Auto as Architect's Inspiration," The New York Times 6 August
2009, New York Edition, AU1.


Website

9
Author's First and Last Name, "Title of Article or Title of Page," Title of Website, Year
of Publication, Organization or Group who runs the Website; available from
http://www.website.com, Internet; accessed Day Month Year.

9
Ryan Weber, "Sentence Variaty," The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL), 2009, Purdue
University; available from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/573/01/, Internet; accessed
2 September 2009.