Commons Archive, started in 2015, brings neighbors into conversation through community projects, celebrations, and workshops looking at local histories in Oakland and Berkeley, CA.
“What happens when the people with recollections of historical events are no longer with us? How do we preserve the past when the eyewitnesses are gone?”
Susan D. Anderson, Commons Archive Advisor, History Curator & Program Manager, California African American Museum
Originally anchored at North Oakland’s Golden Gate Library, Commons Archive began as a way for longtime and new neighbors to share stories. By embracing traditional block club hospitality, Commons Archive supports community resiliency and shares stories of our neighborhoods – the stories that instill a deeper understanding, a sense of belonging, and make a place home.
We are now nomadic! The HEAR HERE Community Billboard, the latest Commons Archive initiative, evolved during COVID-19 in partnership with multicultural community organizations.
Learn more about Commons Archive’s legacies and impacts on our website. For a deeper dive, explore Commons Archive’s expansive neighborhood stories collection on California Revealed, a statewide initiative that helps public libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, and other heritage groups digitize, preserve, and provide online access to archival materials.
