CAPITALS

Are conjunctions, short prepositions, and articles (a, an, and the) capitalized in proper names that are several words long?

No. Conjunctions, short prepositions, and articles within proper names are not capitalized:

The United States of America

Frankovich, Sullivan, and Myers, Attorneys at Law

"Jurisprudence in Misdemeanors of Children and Youth"

When, if ever, are common nouns capitalized?

Generally, common nouns, i.e., nouns that are generic, are not capitalized. A common noun is one that can be preceded by a or an and make sense in context:

a university

a U. S. senator

an engineer

EXCEPTION: The word President is always capitalized when it refers to any or all of the Presidents of the United States.

Common nouns that are separated from their proper nouns or names are occasionally capitalized. For example, titles of officials are capitalized when the titles replace the officials' names:

The report was submitted by the Treasurer.

The Governor did not attend the meeting.

Similarly, names of close family members are capitalized when used in place of their proper name:

My concerns were for Mother, Father, and Aunt Millie.

Don't forget, Father, that you promised to take me to the zoo.

When names of national divisions, government groups, and departments replace the entire name of those entities, they are capitalized:

The Department is aware of your concern.

The  bill was initiated in the House in the 1994 session.

According to Accounting, the bill was paid last week.

Plural common nouns that follow two or more proper nouns are capitalized unless the common nouns denote topographical features:

the Treasury and Interior Departments

Madison and Jefferson High Schools

but

the Atlantic and Pacific oceans

the Columbia and Snake rivers

Should the word following a colon or dash be capitalized?

Words following a colon are often capitalized, while words following a dash are normally not capitalized. However, full sentences or long quotations following a colon or dash generally begin with a capital letter:

Harry Truman stated:  "The buck stops here."

Our goal is  clear:  The Board's action must be implemented.

or

Our goal is clear‚the Board's action must be implemented.

When are the names of directions capitalized?

A name that simply indicates a direction or a portion of a larger geographical area is not capitalized:

western Kansas

moving from north to south

northwestern Germany

A name that indicates a specific geographical area is capitalized:

the Far East

the South

West Texas

Which words are capitalized in headings and in titles of books, articles, and other documents?

The first word and all other main words of headings, book titles, and the titles of articles and other documents are capitalized. Articles ( a, an, and the), short prepositions ( to, of, from, etc.) and coordinate conjunctions ( and, but, so, for, or, nor, yet) are not capitalized unless they appear as the first word:

"The Causes and Consequences of Social Loafing"

Science and the Researcher Quarterly

Guidelines for Giving and Receiving Criticism

When the first word of a hyphenated title or heading is capitalized, is the second word also capitalized?

The second word of a hyphenated expression created to serve as a compound modifier is capitalized:

Extraction of Silver-Bearing Ore Deposits

Storage and Handling of Lead-Lined Containers

The second word of a normally hyphenated expression or of a hyphenated number is not capitalized:

Up-to-date Sports Bulletins

Follow-up Procedures for Effective Maintenance

Thirty-five

One-sixth