Schmitz, Eugene E. (fl. 1857-1906) Proclamation by the Mayor
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04967.01 Author/Creator: Schmitz, Eugene E. (fl. 1857-1906) Place Written: San Francisco, California Type: Broadside Date: 18 April 1906 Pagination: 1 p. ; 22.5 x 15 cm. Order a Copy
Broadside declaring martial law by the Mayor, in the aftermath of the San Fransico earthquake. Authorizes security forces to kill looters, requests citizens to remain at home from dark until dawn, and has directed that electricity and gas remain off. Warns citizens of the dangers of broken chimneys and leaking pipes and fixtures. Housed with 4967.03 inside 4967.02, a book.
At almost precisely 5:12 a.m., local time, on April 18, 1906, a foreshock occurred with sufficient force to be felt widely throughout the San Francisco Bay area. The great earthquake broke loose some 20 to 25 seconds later, with an epicenter near San Francisco. Violent shocks punctuated the strong shaking which lasted some 45 to 60 seconds. The earthquake was felt from southern Oregon to south of Los Angeles and inland as far as central Nevada. The city was then destroyed by a Great Fire that burned for four days. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of trapped persons died when South-of-Market tenements collapsed as the ground liquefied beneath them. Most of those buildings immediately caught fire, and trapped victims could not be rescued. Reevaluation of the 1906 data, during the 1980s, placed the total earthquake death toll at more than 3,000 from all causes. Damage was estimated at $500,000,000 in 1906 dollars.
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