When do you use footnotes?

Sometimes it is not easy to judge when one should cite the source of one's information. Three general rules are:

1. Whenever you quote or paraphrase a source, provide a note.

2. You do not need to provide a note for information that is generally known or that can be found in many different sources. Thus, for example, you do not need to give a note when you give the dates of Abraham Lincoln's birth and death. Those dates may not have been known to you before you started your research, but by the time you write you will know that this sort of information can be found in many sources. On the other hand, if there is a particular fact (eg, a newly discovered document) or a special interpretation about Lincoln (shared by one or a few scholars, but not all), you do need to cite the source.

3. If you cite statistics or other pieces of information that come from a particular source, cite that source. Thus, for example, if you found a document in the Cattaraugus County archives that gives an estimate of the population of the county for the year 1860, cite the source. On the other hand, there is no need to cite a source for the number of electoral college votes that John F. Kennedy received in 1960; that information is available in many sources and thus does not require a note.

It is not possible to say how many notes a particular paper will contain. That will depend on the topic and the way in which the student handles it. Students in doubt about whether they are providing too few or too many notes should consult with the professor during the course of the semester.