what year did this site start? did the creators meet elsewhere and start this site? how Did this site start?

Just curious :)

The site started in 2005 so around 8 years.

I think Paperclip was here from late 2004, but there was another variant of Stickpage around even before that. We might be talking about something as old as 2000. Out of the active members, Scarecrow would be the one to ask.