In 2008, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) launched its first Flickr set, The Shamrock and the Maple Leaf, which provided a sample of items that could be found in the LAC collection. The set complemented a symposium on Irish-Canadian studies hosted by LAC and supported by the National Archives of Ireland.
This new LAC endeavour quickly proved to be a highly positive one, with viewership of LAC’s Flickr site continuing to grow every time a new set was added.
As LAC’s Flickr site drew more and more viewers, the participation of LAC staff members with specialized knowledge of the collection also grew rapidly. Thanks to those employees, 2012 in particular saw a major increase in the number of sets, covering a variety of significant and interesting topics.
As of September 2013, LAC’s Flickr page featured 74 sets and 2,576 images.
Thanks go out to our staff, and especially to all the people who visit LAC’s Flickr page, for helping us reach 1.7 million views. We hope you enjoy this unique window into our collection.
Great to see LAC on Flickr! Appreciate all the staff work and the opportunity for viewers to share/tag, etc. But I do wonder why LAC hasn’t joined ‘The Commons’ on Flickr?
Thank you for your question. We have explored the use of Flickr Commons. We are unable to pursue this initiative at this time due to copyrigh restrictions.
I want to ask a question through Library and Archive Canada’s “Ask a Question” service (about ordering a genealogical record), but it says I can book an appointment in person, by telephone, or Skype. It doesn’t say if I can just receive an answer by email. I don’t think I would need an appointment, so is it possible if I can receive an answer by email rather than make an appointment? Thanks.
Absolutely! Our Genealogy Services answer questions on a daily basis. Please use the online Genealogy Inquiry Form. Be sure to provide as much details as possible.