The Online Resource for Historians, Educators, Students and Visitors since 1997
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America's Historic Lakes
The Lake Champlain and Lake George Historical Site

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I contact you?
The best way to contact me is by using my public email address: contact@historiclakes.org
You can also mail me at:

James P. Millard
P.O. Box 262
South Hero, Vermont 05486
The site is maintained out of my home office in South Hero.

Where can I find the Site's Privacy Policy?
The Site's Privacy Policy can be accessed here.

Do you have a phone number I can call?
No. I have decided to remove my phone number from the site due to the large number of people calling to ask me to take on personal research projects at no cost or provide travel information available on dedicated travel sites. Many of these people spend 1-2 minutes on the site and then call. Please note:  America's Historic Lakes is not a business. The site is the result of the efforts of  1 person and a generous and dedicated group of guest contributors. Please do not call me with personal requests for information or additional research.

There is a phenomenal amount of work that went into creating and maintaining this web site over the years. I receive hundreds of personal requests for information each year, most asking for information beyond what is published. As much as I'd like to, I simply cannot accommodate all of these requests. I couldn't do the website if I spent my time answering these questions and doing research for individuals. Another, under-utilized feature of the site is the SITE SEARCH. Please try it before contacting me.

I want to contact you directly. Why don't you publish your personal email address on the Site?
Like most folks who use the web today, I have been plagued by a deluge of worthless spam and junk email. This becomes especially bad when an email address is published on a web site. I removed all references to my personal email addresses some time ago. When you email me at contact@historiclakes.org your message does reach me; and you will most likely receive a personal reply.

Why do you have ads on the site? I don't recall seeing them before.
Like it or not, my costs are way up and I don't see much choice but to try to find ways to cover expenses. It is expensive and time-consuming to keep a site of this size current, interesting and well-maintained. The ads on this site are pay per click.  You can help keep ads to a minimum by making purchases from our Book and Gift Shop or by patronizing site advertisers.

I have a story or photos that I would like to share with America's Historic Lakes. How can I become a Guest Contributor?
Simply drop me a note at contact@historiclakes.org. I am always happy to have Guest Contributors. It's a wonderful way to share your knowledge and/or historic photos with the world. I will work with you to make sure that you like the way we present your material, the material will remain yours, it is simply on loan, if you will, to the Site. In keeping with our reputation and standards, you are expected to provide accurate material, properly documented with sources. I reserve the right to reject any submissions at my sole discretion. At any time you can ask me to remove your material and I will respect your wishes. I regret that we cannot pay Guest Contributors for their submissions at this time. Further information about becoming a Guest Contributor is available here.

I would like to contact one of your Guest Contributors. Will you give me their contact information?
Not without their permission. Tell me who you want to contact. I will pass your request on to them.

Can I copy the photos on the Site for my own use?
Everything on this website is copyright protected. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act confirms that materials published on the web have the same protection as printed materials such as books. In addition, I have registered this site with the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress in Washington. That stated, I publish this Site for your enjoyment. You may print one copy of selected pages for your personal reading and/or research, provided that the copyright information is printed along with the rest of the material. You may link to any and all pages without asking our permission. Any links to America's Historic Lakes should open in a new window, and should not be displayed within a frame on your site. Under no circumstances may you republish anything from this Site in any form, electronic or otherwise, without my permission.

Some excellent sources of information regarding copyright are:

http://www.whatiscopyright.org/

http://www.copyright.gov/

NOTE: The fact that a work does not appear in a search on the LOC web site does not mean that work has not been registered. There is a very significant delay before a registered work shows up in the LOC web search.

I am an educator. May I use your material in my classes with my students?
I am very pleased to have my material used by students or educators. I work very hard to make sure that this material is accurate and properly presented. You can feel confident using this Site as a resource. Fair Use guidelines give educators a considerable amount of latitude in using segments of published materials in their teaching, provided the rights of the author are respected. I think this is a good thing. I do request that educators tell me they are using my materials, and I do insist that our materials not be republished or distributed outside of the classroom, including on a website that is available to the internet or outside of a local area network. If I know what you need, I can often be of additional assistance, it's not unheard of for me to provide additional information, free of charge. Also, if I know something is of particular value to educators, I will often work to make it even better or more useful.

I am a student. I want to use your photos and text in a report. Is this OK?
Talk to your teacher about the report. It is very rare that a teacher will accept work simply copied from another source. Usually they will want you to put the report into your own words. This Site can be an excellent source of information for you, but the report needs to be yours, not mine. I will gladly give you permission to print selected photos and quotes from America's Historic Lakes, but I expect you to state where they came from and credit the authors and photographers in the report or paper you are writing. You can contact me at contact@historiclakes.org for permission to use site material.

You can find out how to credit online sources by clicking this link: An important message for students.

I represent a publishing firm. Do you sell images from the site for re-publication?
Yes. Photos from America's Historic Lakes have been used in educational textbooks, encyclopedias, atlases, magazines, television documentaries and other publications.  Most of the photos on America's Historic Lakes can be purchased for publication at very reasonable rates. Most of the images are by Site owner Jim Millard. Jim's photos have been used by some of the top publishers in the United States and Canada. There are hundreds of excellent photos in our database that are not used on the site. If you don't see it, drop us a note. If you want to use an image by a Guest Contributor we will ask them for you, all proceeds from the use of images owned by Guest Contributors will go to them unless they specify that the fee be donated to America's Historic Lakes. Usually we ask about $50. for the rights to use an image in another publication. In all cases, we expect a photo credit line for the photographer.

Do you sell prints of your photos to private individuals?
Maybe. I don't often do this, it's a lot of work, takes me away from my other efforts and not really worth my trouble. I will sell you a print, but not the rights to republish or copy that print for distribution to others. If you want to use a photo in a publication like a textbook or magazine, let me know that. Otherwise, if we sell you a print from a photo published on America's Historic Lakes, the print is for your personal enjoyment only, the photographer still owns the rights to that photo. Only the photographer has the right to publish or copy that photograph. If this is acceptable to you, contact us at contact@historiclakes.org. Tell me which photo you would like a copy of, and I will quote you a price. If the photo is owned by one of our Guest Contributors I will contact them for you to see if they are willing to sell you a print. Images published by Guest Contributors are owned by them.

What are your qualifications for publishing a Site such as this?
Information about me can be found here. I let my work speak for itself. I hope you find the Site of value. If you do not, there are many other sources available for your use.

Is Jim available for presentations to groups and organizations?
Yes. Although I have cut back significantly on the number of presentations I do recently, I enjoy giving presentations to civic groups, historical societies and other organizations, including schools. I can talk about publishing on the web, America's Historic Lakes, or a specific aspect of Lake Champlain or Lake George history. Please make your request as far in advance as possible. Usually I will visit your organization for a small stipend or my expenses, depending on whether your organization is charging an admission fee. Another option is to host a book-signing. My multimedia presentations are lively and informative, often standing-room only. For a listing of upcoming presentations, click here. Our Guest Contributors sometimes deliver presentations about their work- I will be happy to forward your request to them.

How can you put a copyright notice on photos that you found in the public domain?
When I use an image that was formerly in the public domain, I will often enhance, modify or edit that image for use on the Site. That editing makes the image into a derivative work, effectively giving me ownership of that modified image. The original image, at whichever source we found the public domain image, remains in the public domain. I will often state where the original image was found in footnotes on the page. Once something enters the public domain, it remains there forever.

Date this page was last edited: 08/14/2011