GEORGE HALLEY - 1968 COTY "WINNIE" AWARD Lace Baby Doll Dress with Flower and Bow |
If the photos were published before 1964, they are probably in the public domain and free for anyone to use. That's because works published before 1964 had to be renewed and we're guessing that your father's photos were not renewed, (less than 15% of copyrighted works were). BTW, a photo is "published" when it is made available to the public on an unrestricted basis -- for example, if the photos were reproduced in a magazine or newspaper.
If the photos were not published ... In that case, the photos are protected under copyright until 2042 (70 years after your father's death). Assuming (1) you inherited the copyrights upon your father's death, and (2) your father didn't transfer copyright in the photos under a work for hire agreement, you would control copyright in the photos. As copyright owner you could make them available under a Creative Commons license and reproduce them at Wikipedia. BTW, a CC license doesn't place the work in the public domain (as we explain here). However, Creative Commons can help you make your work public domain if that is your intention.