You Can Transcribe it! NARA's Transcription Project

NARA Transcription Pilot Project

Great news. You can now join the National Archives Transcription Pilot Project  and help transcribe documents. It's very easy, in fact I just went in and typed out one page of a document in less than 15 minutes.

The document I transcribed was the 1851 Petition of Edward Gorsuch found in a Fugitive Slave Petition Book. Edward lived in Baltimore County Maryland and the first page (which I transcribed) mentions the full names (first and last) of several of his slaves as well as their ages 


There are 3 categories of documents - beginner, intermediate and advanced. I've transcribed hundreds or possibly thousands of documents over the years so I jumped into advanced.  You can enlarge the page you are reading and the scans are crystal clear so it truly isn't difficult.

If you're just starting out or the document you chose is difficult, you can leave and pick another one. This is a great way to contribute a few minutes or more of your time and help make these historic documents more accessible to all.