YCp19 is a yeast centromere plasmid capable of autonomous replication in both yeast and E. coli (J. Mol. Biol., 158: 157-179, 1982). It is stably maintained as a single copy in the yeast cell and is therefore a model yeast "minichromosome" and cloning vector. We have located the positions and measured the abundance of the in vivo yeast transcripts from YCp19. Transcripts from the selectable marker genes TRP1 and URA3 were present at increased levels relative to chromosomal copies of the genes. Unanticipated transcripts from the yeast CEN4 and E. coli pBR322 sequences were also found. Although much of the plasmid vector is actively transcribed in vivo, the regions around the most useful cloning sites (BamHI, EcoRI, SalI) are free of transcripts. We have analyzed transcription of BamHI inserts containing promoter variants of the HIS3 gene and determined that although initiation events are accurate, plasmid context may alter levels of gene expression.