Title

General Rules

In general, Titles for items in WashingtonCountyHeritage.org should:

  • Be short, unique if possible, and highlight a significant aspect of the object. Think about book titles: They quickly describe something important about the book, but they don't describe everything that's in the book. You can go into more detail about the item in the description field.
  • Not include the author's name or the date, unless there is a compelling reason to do so. The author's name and the date will appear elsewhere in the record, so normally you don't need to include them in the title. (Again, think about book titles: they don't normally include the author's name.) Sometimes, though, the title doesn't make sense unless you include these details. Use your judgment.
  • Often include other proper names and places, if appropriate. If an item is about a particular place, person, event, etc. that has a proper name, those are usually good things to put into the title.

*Documentation note: These rules are based on CCO (Cataloging Cultural Objects) and DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard). We often omit the preliminary "Names" segment called for by DACS when describing digital objects. DACS was primarily created to address collections of archival material. In the context of single-item digital records, the inclusion of the creator in the title is repetitive of other fields and potentially confusing to users. We do, however, retain the basic succinct structure of a DACS title whenever possible, i.e. [Subject or Creator]+[Type of Object]+[Topic]. To see much more detail on how to describe materials that have a "title proper", see: DCRM(B) Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (Books).

Titles for Photographs

Photographs and other primarily visual objects usually follow this format: 

[Major person/place/object in image] + [optionally, the style of photograph, such as portrait]

You DO NOT need to state that it is a photograph in each case, but sometimes stating the style of photograph is useful

(Note: we loosely follow the rules for constructing Descriptive Titles in CCO Sections 1.2.2.2.2.2. - 1.2.2.2.3 )

Examples:

    • Sidney Harper Marsh portrait
    • Washington High School Class of 1924 group portrait
    • Forest Grove aerial view
    • John Smith's Blacksmith Shop in Hillsboro
    • Three children in a field

Titles for Art & Museum Artifacts

You may include photographs of original art / artifacts from your organization's collections.* The title should describe the artifact itself (rather than the photograph of the artifact).

*This assumes, like all material that you add to WashingtonCountyHeritage.org, that you believe you have the right to publish the image. Items under copyright may be OK to publish using small thumbnail reference images only; see the AAMD Policy on the use of “thumbnail” digital images in museum online initiatives.
  1. For an item titled by its creator: use the existing title (with some exceptions). When possible, we use the title given by the creator of the work. We may also use a title that has been inscribed on the work, or traditional/authoritative titles from reference works. Generic or confusing titles such as "Untitled" or "#1" should not be used. In the interests of making the record comprehensible to users, we construct a title for such works. (See CCO Section 1.2.2.1.) Examples of valid titles:
    • Sky passage, visions into space
    • Stormy sea
    • Barbara in blue shirt #2
  2. For an untitled item, use the formula:
[Work type] AND/OR [Major theme depicted in the work]

"If no descriptive title is available in an authoritative source, construct a descriptive title. If an inscribed or repository title is overly long, in a foreign language, or does not describe the work, construct a concise descriptive title in the language of the catalog record. Constructed titles may refer to the subject, the materials, the form, or the function of the work." See CCO Sections 1.2.2.2.2.2. - 1.2.2.2.3., especially the "Descriptive Titles" section, for more detailed rules. Examples:

    • Portrait Head of Andrew Jackson
    • Odysseus in the Underworld
    • Wicker chair

Note: 2-dimensional art such as paintings and photographs are usually not specified with a work type in the title, whereas 3-dimensional artifacts usually are. Standard terms for "work types" can be found in the Getty Art & Architecture Thesaurus

Titles for Textual Documents

Textual documents such as PDFs of brochures, books, etc. usually follow this format: 

[Type of textual document] + on + [Topic]

Generally speaking, don't include the name of the author in the title. The author's name will appear in the Creator field.

Examples:

    • Speech on Oregon's Measure 8
    • Letter to John Smith on the Forest Grove Congregationalist Church (Note: this is our preferred format for titling letters: Letter to + Recipient Name + Topic)
    • Writings on the pioneer history of Washington County
    • Notes on nuclear disarmament

Note: An exception is when the text has it's own "title proper", as in a digitized book, work of art, pamphlet, etc. that was given a title by its author. In this case, transcribe the original title of the document. Examples:

    • Huckleberry Finn
    • The New Version of the Holy Bible, as translated from the Greek

See also the rules for "Titles for News & Magazine Clippings" below.

Titles for News & Magazine Clippings

    • For clippings from newspapers/magazines that have an article headline, use: 
"[Original article headline]" + [article type]

You might occasionally have to include a few extra words about the topic of the article, if it's not clear from the title itself. Examples:

    • "Japanese firm to build in state" news article
    • "The collector behind the gun" news editorial
    • "Fences" news article on the Indian Training School