The following is a guest post by Helena Zinkham, Chief, Prints & Photographs Division.
More than 75 libraries, archives, and museums now participate in the Flickr Commons to make it easy for you to discover and help identify photographs with no known copyright restrictions. The pool of pictures has grown to more than 1.25 million images! As the Commons mission states, “Your contributions and knowledge make these photos even richer.”
The Library of Congress is the founding member for the Flickr Commons. As the 6th anniversary for this long-running social media community arrives on January 16th, here’s a snapshot of why the Library continues to value the Flickr Commons so highly. Adding 50 new photos each week has enriched more than 20,000 pictures with community comments that provide personal experience as well as factual biographical and geographical connections. (Numbers are rounded.)
- Critical identifying information added to 5,700 catalog records at the Library
- Comments in Flickr: 45,000 from 13,500 community members
- Tags in Flickr: 190,000 from 4,000 members
- Favorites: 17,000 photos have been selected as favorites by at least one user. Overall, our photos have been selected as favorites 275,000 times
- Followers: 51,000 Flickr members keep up with the Library of Congress
Check out what the 22 new members who joined the Commons in 2013 are contributing!
- British Library: More than 1,000,000 illustrations from books; really, one million!
- California Historical Society: Lively ephemera and many photos from the 1800s
- Costică Acsinte Archive: Striking portraits by a Romanian photographer active during World War I and in 1935-1945
- Deseronto Archives (Ontario, Canada): Resonant of common experiences–a local history mix of aviation, maritime, and military photos
- DEXTRA Photo: Fascinating commercial design and vernacular photography from the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology
- Dundas Museum and Archives (Canada): Charming portraits from the mid-1800s through street views in the mid-1900s
- Glucksman Library, University of Limerick (Ireland): Recent student life, campus landscapes, and classroom scenes
- Het Nieuwe Instituut (Netherlands): Dynamic architecture and design photos
- Kungliga biblioteket (National Library of Sweden): From celestographs to Strindberg—much to enjoy
- Law Society of Upper Canada: Strong portraits of students and judges, including people who need to be identified
- Mennonite Church USA Archives: Richly detailed scenes of community life and public service in many countries of the world
- Mississippi Department of Archives and History: Impressive sets of African American life, historical maps, Civil War, postcards, and more, through the late 1900s
- Nasjonalbiblioteket (National Library of Norway): Everything about Norway in a wonderful variety of postcards, greeting cards, maps, travel views and portraits
- National Archives of Estonia: Intriguing glimpses of student theater, manor life, and village life
- National Museum of Denmark: Interesting photos from all over the world, including Japan, Greenland, and the Danish West Indies
- Nova Scotia Archives: Colorful Christmas cards and engaging photos
- Public Record Office of Northern Ireland: Fascinating photos of people and Belfast
- Royal Australian Historical Society: Early architecture and scenic views that draw you quickly into the past
- Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America: Handwritten diaries, suffrage publications, and Greenwich Village photos by Jessie Tarbox Beals—all attract attention
- Society of Swedish Literature in Finland: Many surprises, from unknown places to author Zacharias Topelius and photos by Atelier K. E. Ståhlberg
- State Records NSW (Australia): Action-filled pictures, organized in such sets as “Your faves,” Bushwalking, Cars, Gaols, Royal visits, and Sydney
- Vancouver Public Library: Wide array of subjects–Chinese Canadians, ice hockey, neon signs, and more
Learn more:
- See our 5th birthday celebration blog post with links to galleries of some of the most viewed or interesting photos.
- Search the Flickr Commons
- Join the conversation in the Flickr Commons Discussion group
- View all the institutions participating in the Flickr Commons.
- Read how the Flickr Commons makes a difference. A Happy Anniversary: Four Years of Sharing on Flickr has reflections from the Library of Congress about the great comments, pairings of old and new pictures, and other Flickr experiences.
- Visit the Flickr Project page for the Library of Congress.