It was founded in 1995 by Craig Newmark for the San Francisco Bay Area. After incorporation in 1999, craigslist expanded into nine more cities in 2000, four each in 2001 and 2002, and fourteen in 2003. As of October, 2005, craigslist had established itself in approximately 150 cities in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, continental Europe, Australia, South Africa, Asia, Israel, and Brazil.
from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craigs_list