> I retrieved a segment of the 1880 Federal Census > from a microfilm at a historical library and > copied the section relating to an entire city. Is > there a problem if I were to type that Census > record into a database, using the same format as > the original Census and post it to the internet or > publish that data under my own copyright? Let me add one more comment. I didn't notice the word "database" the first time I read the letter. It is my understanding that if the construction of the database involves a significant amount of creative input--decisions like how it is indexed, how it can be searched, what kind of indexes you build, and how much value is added to the census by your creativity and originality--then you might be entitled to copyright protection with respect to the database. The underlying facts still can not be copyrighted. I have no idea what standard would be applied to determine whether your database was creative enough to qualify for protection. -- Tom Thatcher [email protected] <http://members.rpa.net/~thatcher/> <http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=thatcher-th>