About the Project (Veterans History Project)
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Interested in viewing VHP collections at the Library of Congress?

View a tutorial for researchers on how to use the Veterans History Project search engine:
VHP Tutorial

1. SEARCH THE DATABASE
    Use our online database to explore the collections.

  • From the VHP homepage, select "Search the Veterans Database" or select the Database Search link in menu above.
  • Search or browse for names, as well as additional categories
  • Limit searches by war or branch of service
  • View the contents of thousands of our digitized collections
  • Depending on the complexity of your research interests, a consultation and search by our staff may be required. Please contact VHP at (202) 707-4916 or [email protected].

2. SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT
    Prepare for on-site to work with physical collections.

You need to contact us at least 10 working days in advance of an on-site visit to allow time for our staff to retrieve and prepare the materials you request at (202) 707-4916 or [email protected].

3. WORK WITH COLLECTIONS ON-SITE AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
    Learn about our hours, locations, and other requirements for doing on-site research
.

  • American Folklife Center Reading Room in room LJ-G31 (Thomas Jefferson Building, Ground Floor)
    Hours: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday, EST (except federal holidays)
  • You must obtain a Reader Identification Card in room LJ-139 (Thomas Jefferson Building, First Floor) in order to use the reading room. Cards are free and can be obtained by completing a registration process and presenting a valid driver's license, state-issued identification card, or passport. Researchers must be 16 and above years of age at time of registration.
  • For more information about doing research at the Library of Congress, please visit the following Web sites:
    Research and Reference Services and Visiting the Library

Allow time for processing of new collections - If you are a veteran or donor interested in seeing your donated collection or the collection of a family member, please remember it takes 4 to 6 months from the time of donation for proper archival processing of your materials. Once materials are processed, you may view the collection in the American Folklife Center Reading Room in the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress after making an appointment. Please contact VHP at (202) 707-4916 or [email protected].

Obtaining Copies of Collection Materials

Generally, VHP collections that have not been digitized are available for onsite use at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. Please contact VHP at (202) 707-4916 or [email protected] if you are interested in obtaining a copy of a collection for use in publication or exhibition.

Please note that all VHP participants (both interviewees and interviewers) retain the copyright to their materials; therefore, permission will need to be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication.

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated or used in publication or exhibition, we must receive from the interviewee written permission for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. In some instances, permission from the interviewer may also be required. This protects the rights of the interviewee/interviewer and is especially important if you plan to use the recording for publication or broadcast.

If a patron ever needs to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, VHP staff will generally release the veteran's contact information to the researcher.

Photocopies of manuscript material and photographs can be made in the Reading Room for 20 cents per each page.

Policy for Using Veterans History Project materials

As a publicly supported institution the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections.

Under the fair use doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute (Title 17 of the U.S. Code), it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use depends on all the circumstances. Thus, there are circumstances under the fair use doctrine where a quote or a sample may be used without permission. However, in cases of doubt, the Copyright Office recommends that permission be obtained. Please also see the Library of Congress Legal Notices page.

Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library's collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Privacy and publicity rights reflect separate and distinct interests from copyright interests. Users desiring to use material from this Project bear the responsibility of making individualized determinations whether privacy and publicity rights are implicated by the nature of the materials and how they may wish to use the materials.

Citing VHP materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file/material on disk:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

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  June 29, 2022
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