Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 14, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Debbie is looking for a way to repeat the first column of a table on each page of a document. The table runs several pages, and having the first column repeated would make their work a lot easier. (She knows how to do it in Excel, but wants to do the same repetition in Word.)
There is no way to repeat left-most columns in a Word table. The only workaround is to use a text box to simulate the columns you want repeated. Display the header area of the document, and create a text box that is anchored to the header. The text box should be wide enough to hold the column (or columns) you want to repeat, and long enough that it extends to the bottom of the page. Paste the column you want repeated into the text box, and remove it from the table itself.
In order to make this look just right, you will need to play with positioning of the text box, position of the left margin, and spacing around the text box and table. This, obviously, entails some trial and error. You'll also want to make sure that the table occupies the entire page of each page on which it occurs, so you may want to add a section break before and after the table, then make sure that the added text box is only applied to the header in the table's section of the document.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (226) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.
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