The residents of San Francisco were familiar with earthquakes, at least those earthquakes who would rattle windows and china cabinets and those who would do little to no damage. The earthquake of 1906 was the most catastrophic in California history, as well as the most destructive in United States history. The earthquake happened on April 18, 1906, at 5:15 a.m. when the ground shook violently for an average of 40 seconds. It was stated that the magnitude of the earthquake was 7.8 to 8.3, which was created by the North American and Pacific plates moving by more than 15 feet while the annual average is 2 inches. The fault is characterized by lateral motion where the Pacific plate moves north. The San …show more content…
As with all lofty cities there is a dark side to a deceptive front, such as grinding poverty, harmful racism and simmering tensions that threatened the stability of the society. Natural disasters do not distinguish between the rich and the poor. The earthquake ripped houses from their foundations and the fires burned them to the ground from Chinatown to Nob Hill having the city lay in ruins. Chinatown was the most densely populated area of San Francisco with nearly 25 percent of the residents calling the area home. Nob Hill possessed a panoramic view of San Francisco where the wealthy and powerful built mansions as a testament to their power and wealth. Nob Hill seemed worlds removed from Chinatown. The earthquake not only leveled the buildings, but also she social landscapes as well (Saul, …show more content…
The great burst of rebuilding gave San Francisco its current character, as much of housing is of the same vintage style. The city regained his vigor and kept its position as principal city of the West. The Bay area 's geologists leaped into action after the earthquake. Since the 1906 earthquake research programs have developed in the United States today, seismographs measure the shaking intensity at over 1000 sites in California. Geodetic instruments and surveys track the plate motion and the related stressing and distortion of the Earth 's crust through California. Of course, there are still major questions about earthquake 's for which we really have no answers at this time. Probably the most asked question is exactly when the next damaging earthquake will happen. At this present time we cannot answer this more precisely than by stating the long term probability of large earthquakes (Saul,