Wednesday, April 18, 2012

106 Years Ago at 5:12 AM...................

Gentle Readers and Dear Friends today is the 106th Anniversary of the great San Francisco Earthquake.....on April 18, 1906 at 5:12 AM the City was shaken awake by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake.  This quake shook the city for almost a minute and in that minute most of Downtown and most buildings fell apart or fell down... but it wasn't the shaking and destruction of buildings it was the fires and the firestorm that followed that laid the city in ruins...


This photo was taken from the top of Alamo Square looking towards downtown.  I lived by Alamo Square for years and the views are superb and iconic of the City - the numerous Tour Buses that unload here daily is astounding.  A Must see spot for any visitor!!

The aftermath of the fires leveled so much of the downtown area that for blocks and blocks there were only bits of buildings left standing...


I could go on and on with the information about the Quake, but, if you click HERE you can read more about it.

In all the time I have lived here, about 20 years, I have felt quite a few quakes, nothing like the '06 one - usually shallow ones that last only a few seconds.  It is very unnerving as you move or bounce with the waves of energy that wash over you during a quake.  We hear all the time that another major Quake is in our future... probably within in the next 50 or so years.  They come in cycles and we are way over due for a BIG one!!

Here is a YouTube Clip from "A Trip Down Market Street" shot from the front of a Cable Car on April 14, 1906....  4 days before most of what was you see in this film was destroyed......


That's about it for today sports fans.  Thanks for stopping by, do stop again!!

Take care,
edgar

19 comments:

  1. Hard to imagine a site like that! I hope you were okay from the quake this morning. We live in fear of an earthquake too. Our house is 10 feet from the fault line and I wonder if we won't won't end up in a big crevice as we are due for a big one too. It's something I live in fear of! The best we can do is to be prepared, and we have good back packs full of emergency supplies. I hope I'm on vacation when it hits.
    Have a good one! Hugz.

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  2. Wonderful video. I guess crosswalks had not been thought of in 1906!

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  3. I admire your courage for living in California! I grew up in Tornado country and have a healthy respect for them, but I am TERRIFIED at the thought of an earthquake. My husband, a California native isn't phased by earthquakes, but quakes at the thought of a tornado...

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  4. Love the willy-nilly walking across the streets and the weaving cars! Makes you happy we now have lines on the streets and crosswalks!

    It's amazing to see the before the quake and to think of how your city survived since.

    Thank you for the trip through time.

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  5. Oh wow, that was today? I always remember that earthquake and the aftermath. The good news for all of you out there is that you're more prepared than most other areas for a big earthquake. Let's hope none of us ever experience a big one like that. Believe it or not, they say NYC is overdue for a "big" one too. Hopefully not that big!

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  6. I will never get use to the fact that the NEXT BIG INE can hit at any moment. I have been through small ones, my husband went through the Northridge quake in So Cal... Everytime I hear of a quake or there is talk of when the next one will hit I think of how un prepared I am :( I really need to get a quake kit together!!!

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  7. Great clip Edgar! Wonderful vehicles and wonderful clothing...lots of weaving going on though!! Let's hope the BIG one doesn't come anytime too soon. Vera

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  8. I've often heard people say things like, "I could never live in Oklahoma because of their tornadoes!" At least we know when the weather is ripe for tornadoes! We can be prepared!

    I've lived through hundreds of tornado warnings, been chased out of our apartment by a tornado and my sisters house was leveled by a tornado but nothing ever scared me more than having a 5.3 earthquake rock my floors last year! That was unnerving to say the least! Oklahoma has been having quite a few earthquakes lately. I don't like it one bit.

    Awesome post, Edgar!

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  9. Having the experience of the 6.5 R scale Thessaloniki earthquake in 1978 I can totally feel for you!AriadnefromGreece!

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  10. All of which is why you must live life to its fullest, as any day could be your last...especially here in CA :)

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  11. Dearest Edgar: I hope you never have another quake, I donot know waht is worse a tornado or a quake.
    I remember back in the late 70s we had a small quake in Minnesota very scary. I was planting marigolds and felt a slight tremor, the epi-center was near St.Cloud Minn.
    Hugs to you rico and the kids.
    Catherine

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  12. I have to say, I have two photos of that panoramic view--Before and After. I keep saying I am going to frame them top and bottom... I have a good framer...just need to get on it. I find it interesting that they compare it to Katrina, since my family was displaced in 1906, and some lived in tents for a time. And then, in 2005 my sister was displaced by Katrina--her house in Waveland was physically moved and consequently destroyed and everything in it! She has not yet recovered. It is not an easy thing to come back after that kind of disaster. She had only what she put in her car when she bugged out a few days earlier. But--I would rather live on the east coast and worry about hurricanes than be in fear of a big earthquake! Actually, we had a fairly interesting one last year in Virginia Beach/Norfolk... about 5.0! First in a long long time! Thanks for the video! Interesting how pedestrians just crossed at will, despite what is coming down the street! Whoa!

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  13. Hi Edgar, This is so very interesting!! We hear the same thing up here, it is just a matter of time! We weren't up here when the Nisqually quake hit. It is humbling to see what nature can do.

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  14. Here in Memphis we have the same "we're overdue for a big one" fear, but at least we don't have all the small ones like you do. At least none that can't be felt. The building that I work in was made (supposedly) earthquake proof/resistant, but I still think if a big one hits we all might be squished. Mother Nature can be mighty powerful.

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  15. Strangely enough, there have been several small quakes near us in Texas. We haven't felt anything though.

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  16. Thank you for sharing this information.

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  17. Interesting photos. Earthquake then fire... so terrible.

    They keep saying we are overdue for "the big one" at home as well.

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  18. We had an earth quake here in VA last year and it scared the "bleep" out of me. Felt a really small one in CA once but didn't expect one here, and that strong.

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  19. Great photos and clip, Edgar. Loved the clothes, the mix of horses and cars, etc. the cars going around the horses reminds me of what we have to do here with the Amish buggies!

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