I love old photographs - especially good ones. And whether you're digging into your family's history, curious about your hometown, or just want to escape (temporarily) into a world before BSODs, DDR3 DRAM, and the nVidia-ATI-Intel war, Flickr's The Commons is a great place to spend some time.

The Commons is an online collection of copyright-free photos from a variety of institutions, including the Brooklyn Museum, the Library of Congress, the Powerhouse Museum, and now the Smithsonian Institution. The Microsoft Pro Photo Blog reports that eventually 2000 photos will find their way from the Smithsonian's collection to Flickr.

Shortcuts to the Past (Be Sure to Come Back!)

Follow these links to the following photostreams on Flickr:

• The Library of Congress
• Powerhouse Museum Collection
• Brooklyn Museum
• Smithsonian Instution
• Mark Edward Soper's photostream

...OK, you caught me: my photos are not historically significant - yet. Come back in 30 or 40 years and we'll talk about it.

Don't Just Sit There - Comment!

As with other photos on Flickr, you are welcome to comment or add tags. Recognize your grandparents? Tell the world!

Illustration based on Portait of Albert Einstein and Pan-American Exposition, Buildings at Night from Smithsonian Instution's collection on Flickr

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flickr, photo sharing, The Commons, history, Smithsonian Instution

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