My document starts on page two

[Bill MacClarence]

The page header on page 2 of the document says "page 3" and the little box on
the left of the page says page 2 on page 1. How can I get page 1 to be page
1? There is nothing above this first page, so page 2 should be page 1.

 

[Stefan Blom]

Is page 2 in a different section (look at the status bar)? If so, you can
change the restart settings for page numbers for that section. Activate the
header/footer area in the second section and then display the Page Number
Format dialog box. Make sure to choose the "Continue from previous section"
option and click OK.

To display the Page Number Format dialog box:

- On the Header & Footer Tools Design ribbon tab, click Page Number, and
then click Format Page Numbers. (Word 2007)

- On the Header and Footer toolbar, click the Page Number Format button.
(Word 97-2003)

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

View | Header and Footer. On the Header and Footer toolbar, click Format
Page Number. Change the setting from "Start at 2" to "Continue from previous
section" (*not* "Start at 1").

 

[Bill MacClarence]

Thanks. I couldn't figure out why the first page was page 2 and why there
would be a "section" above the first page when the status bar said "Page: 1
of 4" But I did what you told me to do and that solved the problem!
Although it doesn't seem rational to me, your trick worked!

 

[Bill MacClarence]

As a said to the other commenter (who gave me the same advice), I appreciate
the advice and it worked fine. I am, however, perplexed at how I could have
a "previous section" when the status bar says I'm on Page 1. What did I do
to create the "previous section?"

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

There is no previous section, but that setting is the default setting for
single-section documents in Word (don't know how it got changed in your
document). It prety much just means, "Use continuous pagination."

Although you *could* use "Start at 1," you would run the risk that new
sections you create would start at 1, which you won't want if you want
continuous pagination, and which can be especially hard to troubleshoot if
there are sections confined to the middle of a page.

 

[Stefan Blom]

You are welcome. But note, as Suzanne pointed out in her reply, that the
"Continue from previous section" option is available even if there is only
one section; by default, page numbering should continue rather than restart.