How do I cite a letter in Chicago?

To cite a letter in Chicago (18th edition), include the author, title, date, and source location. Use our free citation generator for automatic formatting.

How to Cite a Letter in Chicago (18th edition)

Learn how to cite published letters, letters in archives, and open letters in Chicago format (18th edition). This guide includes the reference list format, in-text citation examples, and key formatting rules.

Chicago Bibliography Format

Here is the standard Chicago format for citing a letter in your bibliography:

1. Writer Name to Recipient Name, Month Day, Year, in Title of Collection, ed. Editor Name (Publisher, Year), vol:page.

Chicago Example for a Letter

A complete Chicago reference for a letter, written by hand and checked against the official Chicago guidance for this source:

Butterfield, L. H., ed. Adams Family Correspondence. Vol. 1, December 1761–May 1776. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1963.

Matching in-text citation: 1. Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 31, 1776, in Adams Family Correspondence, ed. L. H. Butterfield (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1963), 1:370.

Chicago In-Text Citation

Use one of these formats when referencing this source within your paper:

Parenthetical

Footnote: 1. Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 31, 1776, in Adams Family Correspondence, ed. L. H. Butterfield (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1963), 1:370.

Narrative

Shortened note: 2. Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 31, 1776.

Key Chicago Formatting Rules

In the note, name the writer and recipient joined by to, without the word letter, then give the date.
For a published letter, add in, the collection title, the editor and the publication details, then the volume and page.
The bibliography lists the collection, not the individual letter.
For a letter in an archive, the note ends with the collection and repository, such as Adams Family Papers, Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston; the bibliography lists the collection.
An unpublished letter to you is a personal communication: cite it in a note only and leave it out of the bibliography (CMOS 18 §14.111).

Step-by-Step Guide

Gather source information: Collect the author name, title, publication date, and URL or DOI for your letter.
Format the reference: Arrange the elements following the Chicago (18th edition) template shown above.
Create the in-text citation: Add a parenthetical or narrative citation in your paper where you reference this source.
Add to your bibliography: Include the full formatted citation at the end of your paper.
Double-check formatting: Verify italics, punctuation, capitalization, and hanging indents match Chicago requirements.

Evidence and review notes

Worked examples on this page are written by hand from the style's own published guidance and checked against it, because the general CSL styles do not encode this source's rules. Editorial guidance and sources in this section were reviewed on 2026-08-14.

Metadata to collect

writer and recipient
date the letter was written
collection title, editor, publisher, year and pages, if published
collection name, box or folder, and repository, if archival
URL of a digitized copy, if you used one

Common metadata traps

A private letter sent to you that no reader can consult is a personal communication; cite it the way the email page shows, not with the formats below.
In a published collection the editor’s heading is not the letter’s title; describe the letter by writer, recipient and date.
An open letter printed in a newspaper or posted online is cited as that article or web page, with the publication that carried it.

Editorial sources

Chicago Manual of Style — citation quick guide →

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I cite a letter in Chicago?: To cite a letter in Chicago (18th edition), include the author, title, date, and source location. Use our free citation generator for automatic formatting.
What is the Chicago format for a letter citation?: The Chicago format for a letter is: 1. Writer Name to Recipient Name, Month Day, Year, in Title of Collection, ed. Editor Name (Publisher, Year), vol:page.
What does the in-text citation look like for a letter in Chicago?: In Chicago, the in-text citation for the example above is Footnote: 1. Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 31, 1776, in Adams Family Correspondence, ed. L. H. Butterfield (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1963), 1:370.