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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC04967.01 |
| From Archive Folder | Documents Relating to the 1900s |
| Title | Proclamation by the Mayor |
| Date | 18 April 1906 |
| Author | Schmitz, Eugene E. (fl. 1857-1906) |
| Document Type | Broadside |
| Content Description | Broadside declaring martial law by the Mayor, in the aftermath of the San Francisco 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. |
| Subjects | American West Disaster Military Law Death Penalty |
| People | Schmitz, Eugene E. (fl. 1857-1906) |
| Place written | San Francisco, California |
| Theme | Government & Politics; Law |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1860-1945 |
| Additional Information | 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. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
| Related documents | Notice to vacate home |