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12 high resolution aerial photos of Vancouver that you should get printed and hang on your wall

Over the years the City of Vancouver Archives have done a great job of digitizing much of their collection of more than 1,000,000 photos of our city's past, making them available for everyone to enjoy.
Over the years the City of Vancouver Archives have done a great job of digitizing much of their collection of more than 1,000,000 photos of our city's past, making them available for everyone to enjoy. And while nerds like me tend to do searches just to look at the images on their website there are so many that are available in high resolution, for free, that are just begging to get printed onto paper. They're free mostly because after a certain amount of time the copyright on photos expires, putting them into the public domain; anyone can then use them for any purpose. We've put together 12 incredible public domain black and white images from the Archives in this slideshow below, linking to the high resolution JPG file for each of them. Click the link of the one you want, download it, get it printed and then hang it on your wall! Or visit the archives search tool HERE and find your own. Just make sure you do an 'Advanced Search' and under the 'Copyright Status' tab on the left click 'Public Domain' and all the images that come up are yours.

12 Historical Aerial Photos of Vancouver

By Vancouver Is Awesome

Click the links in each slide for detailed images, which you should get printed and hang in your house!

  • City Hall - 1945

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    8 years after it opened, and 23 years before the East Wing was added.

  • Fraser River - 1948

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    This photo shows some of the effects of the most disastrous flood ever to flow over the banks of the Mighty Fraser.

  • Stanley Park - 1926

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    12 years before the Lions Gate Bridge was built.

  • Lions Gate Bridge - 1940s

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    There she is! And with a sweet biplane flying over her to boot.

  • False Creek Shipyards - 1942

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    Before the Olympic Village was a twinkle in anybody's eye, the zone was industrial. Also, the city works yard is visible on the left... and one of those buildings might still be standing today!

  • Britannia Mine - 1927

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    The X-Files filmed at this building on the Sea-to-Sky highway after it passed its prime (and before it was restored and turned into the Mining Museum). Here it is during its glory days.

  • Horseshoe Bay - 1937

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    No ferry waits.

  • UBC - 1920's

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    Where to begin? Things have changed a LOT out at UBC since this was taken.

  • Kits Beach - 1945

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    You can see Kits pool, Kits Point and also the Royal Canadian Air Force Equipment Depot in the background there.

  • The PNE Grounds - 1961

    By Vancouver Is Awesome

    Empire Stadium when it was fairly new (it was built 7 years earlier) with natural grass as its surface stands out top right.