Each entry in the inventory provides essential bibliographic information about the document. Items enclosed in brackets are editorial insertions based on evidence contained in the document. The entry adheres to the following format:
DATE. The date in the left margin is intended to aid the reader in looking up specific documents. Complete date information is provided in the entry. In those cases where the original bears no date, when possible the editors have assigned one based on information contained in the document or in related documents and enclosed it in brackets. The date of published or printed papers is the date of publication or public release rather than the date of composition.
AUTHOR. The inventory provides only one author for documents with multiple authors. Since King's script is distinctive, his unsigned handwritten documents are identified as of certain authorship. Institutional authorship is provided when appropriate.
AFFILIATION. Affiliation information is provided if the author wrote in his or her capacity as an official of an organization.
TITLE. In general, the title as it appears on the document is used, with minor emendations of punctuation, capitalization, and spelling for clarity. Titles of addresses contain the name of the event when appropriate. Published versions of earlier speeches contain the date of delivery in the title.
PLACE OF ORIGIN. This field identifies where the document was completed or, in the case of a published document, the place of publication. If the document does not contain the place of origin but the information can be conjectured, it is provided in brackets; such information is offered only for documents written by King or those written on his behalf.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION. This field describes the format of presentation, type of document, version of document, and character of the signature (see List of Abbreviations). Documents that consist of several formats are listed with the predominant one first.
LENGTH. The number of pages or the duration of a recording is indicated.
NOTES. In this optional field, miscellaneous information pertaining to the document is provided. This information includes enclosures to a letter, and remarks concerning the legibility of the document or the authorship of marginalia. For tapes, information about the media used is also indicated in this field.
ARCHIVAL LOCATION. The location of the original document is identified using standard abbreviations based on the Library of Congress's codes for libraries and archives (see List of Abbreviations). When available, box numbers or other archival location identification are provided. Additional locations are provided for some tape recordings in private hands.
IDENTIFICATION NUMBER. The nine-digit identification number, based on the date, uniquely identifies the document.
Published documents contain bibliographic citations that adhere to the Chicago Manual of Style: Name of Journal, volume number (date of issue): page number.