Three women cut a very large birthday cake. The words Happy Birthday are in a floral arrangement on the wall behind them
January 16, 2024

The Commons Turns 16!

Flickr Commons started sixteen years ago today!

“The Commons exists to show you hidden treasures in the world’s public photography archives and how your input and knowledge can help make these collections even richer. You’re invited to help describe the photographs you discover here, either by adding tags or leaving comments.”

Here’s the Flickr announcement of our initial pilot project with the Library of Congress (and here’s their blog post about the partnership).

A few other milestones got us to where we are today, including George Oates’ return and her research on where the Commons can go, culminating in The launch of the Flickr Foundation. A very sweet birthday indeed.

Glass plate negative showing two girls sitting on side of a dinghy on the water

Welcome New Zealand Maritime Museum Hui Te Ananui a Tangaroa!

The Flickr Foundation is delighted to welcome the New Zealand Maritime Museum Hui Te Ananui a Tangaroa as one of the two new members to Flickr Commons, sharing their maritime history with our community.

A child swinging at a baseball in a small baseball field while people watch from the stands.

Welcome To Menlo Park Planning, Our Newest Flickr Commons member

The Planning Division of the City of Menlo Park in California has located and preserved several sets of old photos from the history of Menlo Park as it was being expanded in the 1960s and 1980s.

Screenshot of a PDF on Internet Archive

Do you know how to write a 100-year plan?

Not many of us do. So why not try the new session plan we're launching under CC-BY today! It's a PDF!