Tag SLQ's photos in Flickr Commons
The State Library of Queensland has more than 1.5 million photographs in its collection dating back to the late 1800s. Just over 60,000 are available online. Many photographs are missing information about who is in the photo, when it was taken, where it is and what’s happening in the image. You can help us to add value to these photographs by tagging them in Flickr Commons. We'll know more about the photos and it will be easier for people to find them online.
Before you start, you will need to create an account in Flickr or log in with Facebook, Google or Yahoo.
Tips and tricks for tagging:
Choose a photo you'd like to tag, then click on the “add a tag” tab in the bottom right corner of the page. Add keywords, things you can see, what people are doing, or words to describe the mood of the photo.
Get tagging:
Choose one of the assignments below to get tagging in Flickr Commons - Queensland bands, Fashion of the 1920s and 30s and Australian South Sea Islanders.
The Chinese in early Queensland
Chinese migrants, mostly from Guangzhou Province, arrived in north Queensland in large numbers in the wake of the Palmer River gold rush of the 1870s. After the gold had been worked out they settled in townships such as Cairns, Cooktown, Innisfail and Atherton, becoming merchants and market gardeners, or working on banana plantations.
Today, the carefully restored Chinese temples, or “joss houses”, in a number of Queensland cities and towns, are a poignant reminder of the contribution made by early Chinese migrants to the development of Queensland.
Ideas for tags: joss house, silk, Cooktown. If you recognise someone, you could tag their name, or if the photo is of a place such as plantation, or town, you could use those names as tags.
Start here: The Chinese in early QLD
Difficulty: Beginner
Australian South Sea Islanders
Australian South Sea Islanders have a special place in Queensland's cultural diversity and history. They are the descendants of South Sea Islanders brought to Queensland from 1863 to 1904 from 80 Melanesian islands to work the state's cotton and sugar plantations. Recently digitised Australian South Sea Islander historical photographs need more detail and tags added. We’ve put 40 on Flickr to get you started.
Ideas for tags: sugar plantation, traditional dress, farm worker, indentured, deportation. Words describing people, places and lifestyles are often used as tags. For example, if you recognise someone, you could tag their name, or if the photo is of a place such as plantation, an island or boat, you could use those names as tags. Games or other daily activities depicted in the photographs would also be great tags.
Terminology: It can be uncomfortable to see words used to identify groups of people in a way that is unacceptable to us today. However, in order to search historical documents, we often need to use words and phrases that were commonly used in the past to describe indentured labourers from the South Sea Islands. We often see terms “coloured labour”, “kanaka”, “blackbirding” and “black labour”. We also see the phrases “children labourers” and “orphan labourers”. The preferred term at State Library is “Australian South Sea Islanders”
Start here: Australian South Sea Islanders (set 1) , Australian South Sea Islanders (set 2)
Difficulty: Beginner
To mark the contribution of Australian South Sea Islanders to Queensland over the past 150 years, State Library of Queensland, Queensland Museum and Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art will present a range of exhibitions, projects and events from June to November 2013.
Queensland fashion in the 20s and 30s
There are hundreds of photographs showing the life and fashion style of Queenslanders in the 1920s and 30s. We need your help to tag the garments people wore as well as the activities they took part in.
Ideas for tags: cloche hats, flapper, shorts, swimwear, sash, bow, satin, velvet
Start here: 1920s fashion, 1930s fashion. If you're keen to keep going, try some tagging in the 1940s and 1950s albums.
Difficulty: Beginner
Darling Downs - The Way We Were
Life in Toowoomba and the surrounding Darling Downs Region has changed drastically over the past hundred or so years. Those who read The Chronicle will have seen the regular posts of historical photos from the region under the headline "The Way We Were". Now you can also tag those photos in Flickr too.
Ideas for tags: Toowoomba, Chinchilla, Darling Downs, The way we were, The Chronicle
Start here: Darling Downs
Difficulty: Beginner
Mystery Photos
State Library of Queensland has several photographs depicting unidentified people, places and times. Can you help to solve some of the mysteries? We invite you to add information to these photographs if you know who might be in the photograph or where it is. There might also be other clues relating to people's dress and the architecture that could help you to date the image.
Start here: Mystery Photos
Difficulty: Intermediate
Completed assignments
Queensland bands
These photographs showcase some rare and vibrant moments in Queensland’s musical history. Can you name the band/ensemble and the instruments? What are they doing? Name the venue or town and the year if you know it. Who is the Conductor/Director or can you name any other people in the photo?
Start here: Strike up the band
Difficulty: Beginner
Tell us what you’ve been working on
We’d like to hear all about your discoveries and hard work. We want to celebrate with you!
Email us at discovery@slq.qld.gov.au
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