April 18, 2014

What would the 1906 earthquake look like today?

Posted by Austin Elliott

Looking across Gough Street from Lafayette Park in 1906/now

Looking across Gough Street from Lafayette Park in 1906/now

Today is the 108th anniversary of the devastating M7.8 San Francisco earthquake. As with any “quakiversary” it’s a ripe opportunity for reflection on how earthquake knowledge and engineering have progressed since we learned from that disaster, and to consider how we would fare if faced with the same catastrophe today.

Shaking in NorCal from the 1906 earthquake. From Boatwright and Bundock (2005)

Shaking in NorCal from the 1906 earthquake. From Boatwright and Bundock (2005)

One powerful way to consider how modern-day San Francisco would fare in a repeat of the 1906 quake is by directly transplanting the aftermath into the contemporary city. This awesome and ever-growing collection of meticulously framed photo mashups puts scenes of 1906 aftermath directly into their familiar modern settings.

Check out the full set from Shawn Clover: http://photos.shawnclover.com/Galleries/Fade-To-1906/

Check out the full set from Shawn Clover: http://photos.shawnclover.com/Galleries/Fade-To-1906/

The photos are haunting. I’ve posted about the series before, and the scrupulous efforts of the photographer, Shawn Clover. He’s apparently now looking to publish this compilation. He’s looking to produce a book; I think these photos would serve marvelously in earthquake awareness campaign materials.

The current album is available here:
http://photos.shawnclover.com/Galleries/Fade-To-1906/

…and prior collections in the same series I’ve posted about before can be found here and here:
http://shawnclover.com/2010/10/01/1906-2010-the-quake-blend-part-i/
http://shawnclover.com/2012/08/17/1906-today-the-earthquake-blend-part-ii/