By the People (Library of Congress)

# By the People (Library of Congress) By the People is the Library of Congress's crowdsourced transcription program, launched in 2018 on the Library's Concordia platform at crowd.loc.gov. Virtual volunteers transcribe and review digitized pages from the Library's collections - past campaigns have included the papers of Theodore Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Walt Whitman, and Susan B. Anthony - and completed transcriptions flow back into loc.gov, making historic documents keyword-searchable and accessible to readers who use screen readers. ## What You'll Do - Pick an active campaign and transcribe digitized manuscripts and typed materials page by page - Review and tag other volunteers' transcriptions once you register a free account - Use the platform's OCR tool as a starting point for typed and printed materials - Track your contributions on a profile page and download an official letter confirming your volunteer service ## Who Should Apply Anyone with an internet connection - no minimum age is published, and you do not even need an account to start transcribing. It is one of the easiest genuine federal-institution volunteer roles a middle or high school student can hold, and the Library answers student questions about using it for school-credit virtual volunteering. ## Outcomes Volunteers get documented service with the Library of Congress, close contact with primary sources, and a concrete public contribution: every approved page improves search and accessibility of American history for everyone. Participation is self-paced and year-round with no deadlines.