Authors have the option of (1) signing a copyright agreement online or (2) printing, signing, and mailing to AHA headquarters a copyright agreement, but all authors must execute a copyright agreement before their articles can be published. A link to the agreement will normally be e-mailed to authors when their submissions are accepted by the editorial board, but all submissions are considered on the assumption that authors will agree to abide by the terms of the agreement if their submissions are accepted. Letters to the Editor, announcements, items for the Member News and Affiliated Societies sections, and other such brief submissions are published pursuant to an irrevocable, worldwide, perpetual license to the AHA to publish such submissions in all media, now known or hereafter developed.

As the copyright owner, the Association assumes responsibility for discouraging copyright infringement by registering Perspectives on History (and all other AHA publications) with the US Copyright Office, a part of the Library of Congress. Transferring rights to the AHA also allows for wide dissemination of articles in multiple formats, including but not limited to web pages, e-books, and subcontracted vendors such as EBSCO. By controlling copyright, the AHA gains the ability to republish a published text with other works of interest to diverse constituencies, thus attracting a broader audience for authors' scholarship while enabling the Association to serve a wider range of historians. To facilitate wide distribution of the work, the AHA will permit noncommercial use of the article by third parties, provided these parties give proper credit to the author and Perspectives, and agree to not distribute any derivatives of the work, abiding by the restrictions of Creative Commons license CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0.

Although authors will be transferring rights to the AHA, they will retain the right to use their own material as stipulated in paragraph 3 of the Copyright Agreement. They may photocopy the article for use in their own classes and for research purposes; republish the article (or a revised version of the article) in books they may write, or in anthologies they may prepare, provided first publication credit is given to the Association, the use is nonexclusive, the AHA is notified as a courtesy, and the reproduction includes the notice, "© American Historical Association." 

Authors whose submissions are published will receive, upon request, one free copy of the issue of Perspectives on History that contains the article.

Sample Copyright Agreement for Perspectives on History

I, AUTHOR NAME, the (co)author of “ARTICLE TITLE” (the “Article”) accepted for publication in Perspectives on History (the “Newsmagazine”), the Newsmagazine of the American Historical Association (the “AHA”), agree to work with the Newsmagazine in good faith to resolve any differences regarding changes to the Article proposed by the Newsmagazine or me. I understand that the Newsmagazine generally resolves all issues of style and spelling in accordance with the 17th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style and the 11th edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary.

I represent and warrant that I have the legal right to offer the Article for publication in the Newsmagazine and to transfer the copyright to the AHA free and clear of any encumbrances. I also represent and warrant that the article does not infringe any third party intellectual property right, invade any third party’s privacy rights or contain defamatory content. Should the Article contain material that requires written permission for inclusion, such permission shall be obtained at my expense, in a form suitable to the AHA, and submitted before publication of the Article. I shall defend, indemnify, and hold the Newsmagazine, the AHA, its officers, directors, employees and agents, and any third party licensees, harmless against any loss, liability, damage, cost, or expense (including attorney’s fees) arising in connection with any suit, proceeding, claim, or demand or the settlement thereof based on a breach of any of the above representations and warranties. These representations and warranties shall survive the termination of this agreement.

I hereby transfer and assign to the AHA all right, title, and interest, including all copyright, in and to the Article in the United States and throughout the world (including the rights to publish the article in print as well as any other medium). In return, the AHA (which registers each issue of the Newsmagazine in the AHA’s name with the US Copyright Office) grants me, once the Article has appeared in the Newsmagazine, a nonexclusive, royalty-free license to: (a) reproduce, distribute, perform, and display (and authorize others to do the same) the Article alone or as a part of a book, anthology, or other collection of essays (with the exception of another academic or scholarly journal) in print or electronic media; (b) make or authorize others to make photocopies or similar reproductions of the Article for personal, classroom or nonprofit educational use; and (c) distribute my own offprints. All such uses must include first publication credit to the AHA, as well as a copyright notice in the name of the AHA. In addition, I agree to notify the AHA as a courtesy.

The Newsmagazine permits educational institutions to reproduce and distribute copies of articles free of charge for teaching and research purposes. For-profit publishers must pay a fee, which will be split evenly between me and the AHA. All reproductions permitted by the Newsmagazine must reproduce the Article in full, along with all endnotes, and other supporting material (excluding illustrations), except with my written permission. This agreement shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of the District of Columbia, without regard to its conflict of laws, principles, or rules. This agreement constitutes the entire understanding of the parties and may only be modified or terminated in writing. If any part of this Agreement is declared invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue to apply.