Can a building be cited as a source?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.

Although it is not conventional to document a building as if it were a work, if you are discussing many buildings in detail–for example, analyzing their architectural details, comparing them to one another–and wish to list full information about them in your works-cited list, follow the MLA format template. Generally begin your entry with the architect in the “Author” slot, followed by the name of the building in the “Title of source” position. Then list the date of construction, followed by the location:

Wright, Frank Lloyd. Fallingwater. 1935, Mill Run, Pennsylvania.

This approach should be reserved for an in-depth, specialist study on architecture. If you are writing generally about a building’s importance, no entry is needed.