Guidelines for Submitting e-Plaques

We accept entries chronicling a broad spectrum of Berkeley’s past: people, events, historic buildings, organizations, neighborhood businesses, archeological sites, streams, unique biological specimens, or other areas of interest. Like physical plaques, e-Plaques are linked to specific locations that will be marked on our website’s interactive map.

e-Plaques may document Berkeley residents from all walks of life, from prominent world leaders to eccentric street people. Subjects can be ordinary folks who lived interesting lives as well as those who experienced stunning successes or failures. Texts focusing on individuals are limited to those no longer living. Subjects may include Nobel Prize winners, athletes, recipients of honorary degrees, and major social figures who have lived in or visited Berkeley—artists, writers, actors, spiritual teachers, publishers, politicians, musicians, scholars, architects, charismatic personalities, and innovators whose lives or achievements intrinsically illustrate what is typical, or atypical, of Berkeley. E-plaques about past movements or events, unlike those about individuals, can include people currently living.

When visiting e-Plaque physical sites we urge you to walk gently in natural habitats and respect the privacy of building residents. As future funding becomes available some e-Plaques may become real plaques.

Anyone Can Contribute

Anyone with an idea for one or more e-Plaques is encouraged to do the research and make submissions. Preliminary inquiries are welcome. For general style and format, see existing e-Plaques on this website. Entries should be limited to no more than approximately 400 words. Texts about people who have spent only a portion of their lives in Berkeley should stress, though not necessarily be limited to, relevant local places, activities and events.

If you send us a text and personal photos, they become our property. Writers’ names will be published with the texts. We will act as editors and may accept, edit, or reject submittals. Sources must be sent with texts and we encourage inclusion of references and links to relevant websites.

Please submit photos or other illustrations in PDF format with complete titles and source information. All illustrations should be either in the public domain or sent with permission for use by the Berkeley Historical Plaque Project of the Berkeley Historical Society, an educational, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. We will update the website to include new texts at regular intervals.

How to Submit an e-Plaque

Send all submissions via email to plaques@berkhistory.org.