You may have seen it in the news a few weeks ago.

The Library of Congress announced that it had uploaded some 3,000 of its old photographs to the popular online photo-sharing service Flickr. Flickr users were asked to “tag, comment and make notes on the images, just like any other Flickr photo, which will benefit not only the community but the collections themselves.”

In other words, the Library of Congress was asking for public help in filling the gaps on photos that were missing key information – such as location, date and who or what was pictured. It’s an example of a phenomenon known as “crowdsourcing,” where an institution outsources a task to the public or a large group of strangers willing to work for free.

Even before the Library of Congress placed its photos on Flickr in January, Beebe Library was uploading its own collection of Wakefield historic images to the library’s Flickr page.

Since 2007, Beebe Library has uploaded hundreds of old photos of Wakefield, where Flickr users can also comment and make notes. You don’t need a Flickr account to view the photos, but only Flickr members are able to comment on photos. If you don’t have a Flickr account, you can sign up for a free account in a matter of minutes.

The historic photos on Beebe Library’s Flickr page include old pictures of Wakefield’s schools, churches, the old Town Hall and numerous other sites around town.

You can see what Wakefield Common looked like 100 years ago, or view the interior of the old St. Joseph’s Church.

There are pictures of Wakefield’s grand old Town Hall that stood at the corner of Main and Water streets, and photos of the present Town Hall when it served as Wakefield High School. You’ll also find images of the old Atwell School on Main Street that was destroyed by fire in the 1970s, and photos of the old Heywood-Wakefield rattan factories that stood where Shaw’s Supermarket is now located.

There are also old pictures of Camp Curtis Guild and a collection of local photos taken by Wakefield historian/photographer Joseph Payro.
On the library’s Flickr page you can also view dozens of old postcards featuring images of Wakefield from a century ago. Or check out some slightly more recent postcards from Pleasure Island, the legendary Wakefield amusement park from the 1960s.

These and numerous other old photos on Beebe Library’s Flickr page will take you back to Wakefield in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Again, anyone can view these photos – you don’t have to be a Flickr member. (Remember to click on each image to enlarge it to full size.)

Take a trip back to Wakefield’s past with Beebe Library and Flickr at http://flickr.com/photos/beebe_library/, or go to Beebe Library’s web site at www.wakefieldlibrary.org/ and link to the Flickr photo page from there.

Community Supports Gift Magazine Program

For over fifteen years, Beebe Library has administered a gift magazine program that helps to sustain the collection of magazines at the library.

Through the years, donations have ranged from $12 for one subscription to over $100 for several subscriptions. These contributions enable the library to continue to provide over 150 magazine subscriptions for all Wakefield citizens.
Currently nearly 40 community organizations and individuals are donating 54 magazine subscriptions to the library.

These donors include: Backyard Gardeners, the Badolato family, Afshin Bozorgzadeh, Lorraine Breithaupt, Frank Conte, Elizabeth Cooper, Ellen and Walter Creedon, Julie Dickenson, Marilyn Dodge, Jim Eckland, Beatrice Epstein, Friends of Lake Quannapowitt, Anu Gerweck, Michael Giannattasio, Mary Lally, Lillian Little, the Lyons family, Sharyn McGann, Gene Moulton, Sara Murphy, the Ramsdell family, Deborah Ulrich, Nancy Ulrich, Peter and Fay Vale, Wakefield Garden Club, Wakefield Junior Woman’s Club, Brad Weeden, Leonard Wenyon, Margaret Whipling, Charlotte Wood, the Wulff family, Gerald Zingariello and Pat Zingariello.

The library extends its thanks to all. The gift magazine program is a success because of the participation of all who donate.

Discusion on Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 20

On Wednesday, February 20, at 7 p.m. the library will host a discussion of “The Punishment of Virtue: Inside Afghanistan After the Taliban” by Sarah Chayes. This book discussion will be led by Eve Lyman.

Frustrated by NPR’s disinterest in what Ms. Chayes considered the real story, she gave up journalism in 2001 to become the field director for Afghans for a Civil Society. “The Punishment of Virtue” is Chayes’ account of her personal experiences in Afghanistan as she hurls herself into the culture and ultimately experiences death threats as her work brings her into direct conflict with local authorities. It is an engrossing account of what went wrong in Afghanistan and how there is hope that the damage can be fixed.

This discussion promises to be lively, informative, and thought provoking.

Call 781-246-6334, x2 to reserve your seats for this program, or email@wakefieldlibrary.org.

Categories: Library News
Tags: flickr, history, photos, Wakefield, Wakefield history