- Joined
- Aug 25, 2013
- Location
- Hannover, Germany
Maybe this helps. The example below is about letters from a WWII Seabee to his bride, found at a flea market. It says ownership of the letter does not mean ownership of the copyright, so in your case, the buyer at the auction cannot accuse you of a copyright infringement, because the buyer does not automatically own the copyright:But is it fair game to include these in my manuscript, as long as I properly cite them? Or is it inappropriate to do so, since the items are for sale and aren't intended for reuse?
https://www.legalgenealogist.com/2012/12/03/copyright-and-the-lost-letters/
It is said here that copyright has expired on letters when the writer has died more then 70 years ago. I think that can be assumed....and to be on the safe side, quote only small portions and, as @Zella and others already said, quote the website where you found it, including the date when you saw it.
This page
https://poorvucenter.yale.edu/writing/using-sources/citing-internet-sources
provides details.