138-475: The Northwestern Pacific Railroad is a 271-mile (436 km) mainline railroad from the former ferry connections in Sausalito, California north to Eureka , with a connection to the national railroad system at Schellville . The railroad has gone through a complex history of different ownership and operators but has maintained a generic name of reference as the Northwestern Pacific Railroad, despite no longer being officially named that. Currently, only
276-533: A Richmond, California connection to the Lincoln Highway in 1925. Golden Gate established another route between Hyde Street and Berkeley Pier in 1927. Southern Pacific built six diesel-electric ferries and gained control of Golden Gate's Golden -prefix ferries to form the subsidiary Southern Pacific-Golden Gate Company in 1929. Another auto ferry pier operated at the foot of Broadway. Southern Pacific-Golden Gate auto ferries ceased operation shortly after
414-688: A 62-mile (100 km) stretch of mainline from Larkspur to the Sonoma County Airport in Windsor and east to Schellville on the “south end” is operated by Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART), which operates both commuter and freight trains with plans for future extension north to Cloverdale . The “north end” from Willits to Eureka (which includes connections to the California Western Railroad )
552-714: A backdoor to the Chinese Exclusion Act , and bring in their relatives from China . The earthquake was also responsible for the development of the Pacific Heights neighborhood. The immense power of the earthquake had destroyed almost all of the mansions on Nob Hill except for the James C. Flood Mansion . Others that had not been destroyed were dynamited by the Army forces aiding the firefighting efforts in attempts to create firebreaks. As one indirect result,
690-494: A cafe-lounge in addition to coach cars. Passengers from San Francisco would take Greyhound Buses from the San Francisco Ferry Building at the base of Market Street to San Rafael. NWP locomotives 112, 140, 141, 143, and 178 plus SP numbers 2345, 2356, 2564, 2582, and 2810 were stored at Tiburon for emergency use; but steam power had disappeared by 1955. On November 10, 1958, all mainline passenger service
828-442: A combined 65.3% “yes” vote in the two-county District but ultimately failed to meet the “2/3 supermajority.” In 2008, Measure Q passed providing funding for the construction of a commuter railroad through a quarter-cent sales tax. Though it was thought that this would provide enough initial funding, it did not. Consequently, the railroad would be constructed in stages over several years. In 2009, SMART began initial electrical work on
966-805: A dominant position in Bay ferry service by gaining control of the South Pacific Coast Railroad (SPC) ferries in 1887, the Northwestern Pacific ferries in 1929, and the Petaluma and Santa Rosa ferries in 1932. After the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1936 and 1937, Southern Pacific passenger ferry service was reduced to four routes: Ferry Building to Oakland Pier, Ferry Building to Alameda Pier, Hyde Street to Sausalito, and
1104-573: A ferry to cross the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers between Mallard and Chipps. Service began in 1912 with the wooden ferry Bridgit carrying six interurban cars. Bridgit burned in 1913 and was replaced by the steel ferry Ramon with the same car capacity. Santa Fe and Western Pacific (WP) both ran passenger ferries connecting their east bay terminals to San Francisco; but both discontinued ferry service in 1933. Southern Pacific maintained
1242-532: A fireman who told me that people in that neighborhood were firing their houses...they were told that they would not get their insurance on buildings damaged by the earthquake unless they were damaged by fire". One landmark building lost in the fire was the Palace Hotel , subsequently rebuilt, which had many famous visitors including royalty and celebrated performers. It was constructed in 1875 primarily financed by Bank of California co-founder William Ralston ,
1380-600: A large piece of equipment for Pacific Gas and Electric , has provided construction trains for SMART, bulk car storage, and currently hosts the Golden Gate Railroad Museum storage lot on a former lumbar yard spur in Schellville. Regular passenger trains operated by SMART began in late Spring 2017 between Sonoma County Airport and San Rafael, later opening the Larkspur station with a connection to
1518-557: A makeshift tent city in Golden Gate Park and were treated by the faculty of the Affiliated Colleges. This brought the school, which until then was located on the western outskirts of the city, in contact with significant population and fueled the commitment of the school towards civic responsibility and health care, increasing the momentum towards the construction of its own health facilities. In April 1907, one of
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#17327729485051656-637: A more successful trans-Bay seaplane ferry was operated by Air Ferries Ltd. It ran from Pier 5 on the San Francisco waterfront to a shoreline barge docked at the foot of Franklin Street along the Oakland Estuary. It also operated between San Francisco and Vallejo. A fatal accident in 1933 put an end to the service. During the 1960s, SFO Helicopter transported passengers to and from the San Francisco and Oakland airports from various locales around
1794-578: A natural disaster in California's history and high on the lists of American disasters. The San Andreas Fault is a continental transform fault that forms part of the tectonic boundary between the Pacific plate and the North American plate . The strike-slip fault is characterized by mainly lateral motion in a dextral sense, where the western (Pacific) plate moves northward relative to
1932-544: A part of their long-term lease agreements for their main stretch of trackage in the Napa, Fairfield, and Woodland areas. The CFNR generally operated one train from Willits to Hopland, where freight cars were transferred to a second train from Hopland to Schellville. The track from Lombard to Healdsburg was owned by the precursor to SMART, and the CFNR had trackage rights granted from Schellville to Willits where interchange occurred with
2070-686: A separate terminal yard on North Street in Santa Rosa . Freight interchange was predominantly through Ignacio, but there was a second connection to the SP in Santa Rosa until the line through the Valley of the Moon was abandoned in 1935. The railroad service became popular; an early daily NWP timetable shows 10 passenger trains each way, plus dozens of freights. The rail line soon replaced steam schooners as
2208-593: A significantly shorter rupture length, but these observations can be reconciled by allowing propagation at speeds above the S-wave velocity ( supershear ). Supershear propagation has now been recognized for many earthquakes associated with strike-slip faulting. In 2019, using an old photograph and an eyewitness account, researchers were able to refine the location of the hypocenter of the earthquake as offshore from San Francisco or near San Juan Bautista , confirming previous estimates. The most important characteristic of
2346-509: A time when the science of seismology was blossoming. Although the impact of the earthquake on San Francisco was the most famous, the earthquake also inflicted considerable damage on several other cities. These include San Jose and Santa Rosa , the entire downtown of which was essentially destroyed. As damaging as the earthquake and its aftershocks were, the fires that burned out of control afterward were far more destructive. It has been estimated that at least 80%, and at most over 95%, of
2484-599: A woman who lit her stove to prepare breakfast, unaware of the badly damaged chimney, destroying a 30-block area, including a college, the Hall of Records and City Hall. Some of the fires were started when San Francisco Fire Department firefighters, untrained in the use of dynamite , attempted to demolish buildings to create firebreaks . The dynamited buildings often caught fire. The city's fire chief, Dennis T. Sullivan , who would have been responsible for coordinating firefighting efforts, had died from injuries sustained in
2622-450: Is credited with saving nearly 1,500 specimens, including the entire type specimen collection for a newly discovered and extremely rare species, before the remainder of the largest botanical collection in the western United States was destroyed in the fire. The entire laboratory and all the records of Benjamin R. Jacobs , a biochemist who was researching the nutrition of everyday foods, were destroyed. The original California flag used in
2760-609: Is currently out of service, but saved by 2018 legislation to be converted into the Great Redwood Trail . In the late 1800s both the Southern Pacific Railroad (“SP”) and the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (“AT&SF”) had great interests in building lines north from San Francisco to Humboldt County to transport lumber south. The Southern Pacific Railroad controlled the southern end of
2898-427: Is equivalent to $ 10.2 billion in 2023 dollars. An insurance industry source tallies insured losses at $ 235 million, the equivalent to $ 5.97 billion in 2023 dollars. Political and business leaders strongly downplayed the effects of the earthquake, fearing loss of outside investment in the city which was badly needed to rebuild. In his first public statement, California Governor George Pardee emphasized
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#17327729485053036-405: Is still uncertain, but various reports presented a range of 700–3,000+. In 2005, the city's Board of Supervisors voted unanimously in support of a resolution written by novelist James Dalessandro ("1906") and city historian Gladys Hansen ("Denial of Disaster") to recognize the figure of 3,000+ as the official total. Most of the deaths occurred within San Francisco, but 189 were reported elsewhere in
3174-619: Is supported by the occurrence of a local tsunami recorded by a tide gauge at the San Francisco Presidio ; the wave had an amplitude of approximately 3 inches (7.6 cm) and an approximate period of 40–45 minutes. Analysis of triangulation data before and after the earthquake strongly suggests that the rupture along the San Andreas Fault was about 310 miles (500 km) in length, in agreement with observed intensity data. The available seismological data support
3312-562: Is talking of it this afternoon, and no one is in the least degree dismayed. I have talked and listened in two clubs, watched people in cars and in the street, and one man is glad that Chinatown will be cleared out for good; another's chief solicitude is for Millet 's Man with a Hoe . 'They'll cut it out of the frame,' he says, a little anxiously. 'Sure.' But there is no doubt anywhere that San Francisco can be rebuilt, larger, better, and soon. Just as there would be none at all if all this New York that has so obsessed me with its limitless bigness
3450-627: Is today called the Oakland Estuary , an inlet of San Francisco Bay. The estuary, which in the 1800s included what is today's Lake Merritt , was the "creek". In 1851, Captain Thomas Gray, grandfather of the famous dancer Isadora Duncan , began the first regular ferry service to San Francisco from the East Bay. Service started with the stern-wheel Sacramento River packet General Sutter and the small iron steam ferry Kangaroo . Service
3588-527: The Bank of Canada in Ottawa gave $ 25,000. The U.S. government quickly voted for one million dollars in relief supplies which were immediately rushed to the area, including supplies for food kitchens and many thousands of tents that city dwellers would occupy the next several years. These relief efforts were not enough to get families on their feet again, and consequently the burden was placed on wealthier members of
3726-560: The California Senate enacted the California Standard Form of Fire Insurance Policy, which did not contain any earthquake clause. Thus the state decided that insurers would have to pay again if another earthquake was followed by fires. Other earthquake-endangered countries followed the California example. The 1906 Centennial Alliance was set up as a clearing-house for various centennial events commemorating
3864-581: The Guerneville branch to Duncans Mills , train #102 between Glen Ellen and Tiburon, train #109 between Tiburon and Sausalito , train #145 over the narrow gauge between Occidental and San Anselmo , train #202 between Willits and Sherwood, and train #251 operating over the logging branches out of Sherwood. Passenger trains #131 and #132 ran between Sausalito and Willits, trains #21 and #22 between Sausalito and Ukiah , train #23 between Sausalito and Healdsburg , trains #17 and #20 between Sausalito and
4002-1019: The Horseshoe Bay - Langdale route from 1964 to 1976 as the MV Langdale Queen . The Peralta , rebuilt as the MV Kalakala , operated on various Puget Sound crossings and on the Seattle - Victoria - Port Angeles route. The City of Long Beach , renamed the City of Angeles , operated out of Port Angeles and the Stockton , which became the Klickitat , operated on the Keystone - Port Townsend route until 2007. Mendocino (renamed Quinault ) and Redwood Empire (renamed Nisqually ) were retired in 2003 and scrapped in 2009. Santa Rosa
4140-549: The Interstate Commerce Commission of their intent to abandon the line. The line was ordered reopened by the U.S. Circuit Court in March 1984. From the early 1970s into the 1980s the SP began substantially cutting back non-core routes. In 1971, the line from Sausalito, once a major terminal on the line, was abandoned and converted into a walking path connecting to similar trails throughout Marin built upon
4278-471: The Modified Mercalli intensity scale reached XI ( Extreme ) in San Francisco and areas to the north like Santa Rosa where destruction was devastating. The main shock was followed by many aftershocks and some remotely triggered events . As with the 1857 Fort Tejon earthquake , there were fewer aftershocks than would have been expected for a shock of that size. Very few of them were located along
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4416-727: The North Coast to the Salinas Valley , an agricultural region to the south of the San Francisco Bay Area . Devastating fires soon broke out in San Francisco and lasted for several days. More than 3,000 people died, and over 80% of the city was destroyed. The event is remembered as the deadliest earthquake in the history of the United States . The death toll remains the greatest loss of life from
4554-800: The Oakland Long Wharf . These railroad ferries mostly carried passengers, not trains, although there was some ferrying of freight cars to San Francisco. When the Central Pacific re-routed the Sacramento to Oakland segment of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1876, a ferry across the Carquinez Strait was established, and the world's largest ferryboat, the Solano was built (later joined by a sister ferry,
4692-777: The San Francisco Ferry Building . During a strike by Harbor Carriers employees in 1969, the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District chartered a boat to provide replacement service; the success of this experiment led the District to establish Golden Gate Ferry and begin operating service from Sausalito to the Ferry Building in 1970. Today Golden Gate Ferry operates modern high speed ferryboats between San Francisco and four different landings in Marin County . In 1973 Alcatraz Island opened to
4830-548: The San Francisco and Oakland Railroad and the San Francisco and Alameda Railroad (SF&A), which were taken over by the Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) in 1870 to become an integral part of the First transcontinental railroad . The earliest railroad ferries ran from Oakland Point and from Alameda Terminal when Alameda was still a peninsula. The ferry pier at Oakland Point was greatly enlarged to form
4968-455: The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge led to the decline in the importance of most ferries, some are still in use today for both commuters and tourists. One of the earliest ferry routes ran between San Francisco and Oakland on what was called the "creek route". The name derived from the Oakland landing site located at the foot of Broadway where Jack London Square is today, fronting on what
5106-498: The U.S. Mint , post office, and county jail. They aided the fire department in dynamiting to demolish buildings in the path of the fires. The Army also became responsible for feeding, sheltering, and clothing the tens of thousands of displaced residents of the city. Under the command of Funston's superior, Major General Adolphus Greely , Commanding Officer of the Pacific Division, over 4,000 federal troops saw service during
5244-480: The dual-gauge San Francisco Belt Railroad . After the flooded Russian River destroyed the 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ) standard gauge NWP Guerneville branch bridge at Bohemia on 19 March 1907, NWP rebuilt the bridge one-half mile downriver; and extended the Guerneville branch from Monte Rio to Duncans Mills as dual-gauge by 1909. Redwood lumber was then shipped out over
5382-628: The epicenter of the quake was assumed to be near the town of Olema , in the Point Reyes area of Marin County , due to local earth displacement measurements. In the 1960s, a seismologist at UC Berkeley proposed that the epicenter was more likely offshore of San Francisco, to the northwest of the Golden Gate . The most recent analyses support an offshore location for the epicenter, although significant uncertainty remains. An offshore epicenter
5520-645: The "man who built San Francisco". In April 1906, the tenor Enrico Caruso and members of the Metropolitan Opera Company came to San Francisco to give a series of performances at the Grand Opera House . The night after Caruso's performance in Carmen , the tenor was awakened in the early morning in his Palace Hotel suite by a strong jolt. Clutching an autographed photo of President Theodore Roosevelt , Caruso made an effort to get out of
5658-527: The 1846 Bear Flag Revolt at Sonoma , which at the time was being stored in a state building in San Francisco, was also destroyed in the fire. The city's fire chief, Dennis T. Sullivan, was gravely injured when the earthquake first struck and later died from his injuries. The interim fire chief sent an urgent request to the Presidio, a United States Army post on the edge of the stricken city, for dynamite. General Frederick Funston had already decided that
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5796-450: The 22nd Infantry and other military units involved in the emergency. Ord later wrote a long letter to his mother on April 20 regarding Schmitz's "Shoot-to-Kill" order and some "despicable" behavior of certain soldiers of the 22nd Infantry who were looting. He also made it clear that the majority of soldiers served the community well. Property losses from the disaster have been estimated to be more than $ 400 million in 1906 dollars. This
5934-758: The Argentina-Uruguayan Navigation Touring Company, renamed Argentina , and served a route crossing the Rio de la Plata . Seventeen were purchased by the Puget Sound Navigation Company : Golden West was promptly resold to San Diego and renamed North Island for service between San Diego and Coronado. Golden Bear was salvaged for parts after being damaged when a towline parted off the Oregon coast on 15 November 1937. The others went on to serve in
6072-687: The Bay Area; nearby cities such as Santa Rosa and San Jose also suffered severe damage. Between 227,000 and 300,000 people were left homeless out of a population of about 410,000; half of those who evacuated fled across the bay to Oakland and Berkeley . Newspapers described Golden Gate Park , the Presidio, the Panhandle and the beaches between Ingleside and North Beach as covered with makeshift tents. More than two years later, many of these refugee camps were still in operation. The earthquake and fire left long-standing and significant pressures on
6210-689: The Carquinez Strait in November, 1930. When trains reached Oakland, freight cars were loaded aboard ferries from Long Wharf on Oakland Point beginning in 1870. Freight car ferry loading switched to the Oakland Mole in 1881. After 1890 freight cars were delivered to the San Francisco Belt Railroad ferry slip at the foot of Lombard and East Streets. Belt Railroad tracks were later dual-gauged to also carry cars from
6348-494: The Chinese population and export Chinatown (and other poor populations) to the edge of the county where the Chinese could still contribute to the local taxbase. The Chinese occupants had other ideas and prevailed instead. Chinatown was rebuilt in the newer, modern, Western form that exists today. The destruction of City Hall and the Hall of Records enabled thousands of Chinese immigrants to claim residency and citizenship, creating
6486-410: The City of Alameda and Port of Oakland after the bridge reopened the following month. In 2011 the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) was set up to take over the Oakland/Alameda route and other routes between San Francisco and the East Bay , forming the San Francisco Bay Ferry system; over the following decade it added several additional routes. WETA contracts with
6624-465: The Eel River, and permanently changed the topography of the area. The line was closed for 177 days while 850 men rebuilt the railroad through the Eel River canyon. The line was reopened on 16 June 1965. In the years following the 1964 flood, the rail line was less reliable due to increased landsliding in the Eel River Canyon; but freight traffic remained high until the 1970s, as improvements to US Highway 101 cut hauling times, making trucking competitive with
6762-512: The Federal Government of the United States had not conducted the serious studies that were needed to gather data about earthquakes on the west coast. He said public discussion was being stifled by fears that acknowledgement of earthquakes would drive away business and investors, and that geologists were told not to gather information about the 1906 earthquake, and certainly to not publish it. Some people went as far as to deny that an earthquake had happened. Branner argued that preparation for earthquakes
6900-401: The Fort Seward depot. More lumber cars might be added at Alderpoint during the long, gentle climb up the Eel River canyon. A second crew took over at Willits, where more cars from the California Western typically swelled the train to approximately one hundred cars. Five miles (8 km) of 2.25 percent grade from Willits to Ridge originally required helpers, but six "Cadillacs" typically moved
7038-447: The Great Depression. With the onset of World War II , freight shipments rose while passenger service remained constant. Freight service on the NWP increased in the 1950s owing to an increase in lumber demand due to the post-war housing boom . Branch lines were dismantled during the 1930s. The Sebastopol branch became redundant following purchase of the Petaluma and Santa Rosa Railroad in 1932, and California State Route 12 adopted
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#17327729485057176-606: The Guerneville branch to Duncans Mills, trains #9, #10, and #14 between Sausalito and Glen Ellen, trains #6 and #7 between Sausalito and San Quentin , train #4 between Tiburon and San Rafael , train #92 over the narrow gauge between Sausalito and Cazadero , train #84 over the narrow gauge between Sausalito and Point Reyes , and #101, a mixed freight and passenger train operated on the Sebastopol . Sunday and holiday passenger trains often required two locomotives and sometimes two or more sections. Independence day traffic required borrowing 25 or 30 Southern Pacific coaches. Completion of
7314-466: The Guerneville branch. A freight transfer shed was built at San Anselmo so narrow-gauge tracks could be removed from the ferries in 1910; and more than half of the narrow-gauge freight cars were scrapped by 1912. A daily freight train operated from Occidental to San Anselmo in the morning and returned to Occidental in the afternoon. The train included a coach for Sonoma County students attending school in Tomales. A freight engine stationed at Duncans Mills
7452-448: The Highlanders (soon to be the Yankees) and the Philadelphia Athletics to raise money for quake survivors. William James , the pioneering American psychologist, was teaching at Stanford at the time of the earthquake and traveled into San Francisco to observe first-hand its aftermath. He was most impressed by the positive attitude of the survivors and the speed with which they improvised services and created order out of chaos. This formed
7590-480: The Larkspur ferry landing. Plans still remain to extend the line north to the city of Cloverdale. While SMART will eventually extend commuter service to at least Cloverdale, NCRA and NWPco had plans to open the line to the Skunk Train connection and major yard facility in Willits , but no timeline was established or attempts made before NCRA was dissolved and as of 2024 there is little interest by SMART. Both agencies' plans were dependent on state and federal grants, and
7728-527: The Mendocino-Sonoma County border in September 2020, and in February 2022, took over NWP freight operations, having been approved by the US Surface Transportation Board. Today, freight service is operated by SMART. Freight services continue to use locomotives previously both owned and leased by NWPco, now by SMART, in various “Northwestern Pacific” themed schemes. NWP mileposts conform to Southern Pacific Railroad convention of distance from San Francisco : The NWP 3 ft ( 914 mm ) narrow-gauge line
7866-473: The NCRA, were then pressed into short-lived service before additional washouts, mechanical failures, and low revenue again closed the line. By 2016, several movements including scrapping of former equipment in Eureka and returning of leased and privately stored equipment in Willits, Petaluma and Schellville had begun. In January 2001, the NWP briefly resumed service between Schellville and Cotati using three leased locomotives with reporting mark "NWPY", but service
8004-562: The NCRA. Maintenance and repair orders by the Federal Railroad Administration that were not addressed ultimately led the FRA to shut down all operations over the entire length of the line on November 22, 1998 under Emergency Order 21, the first and only time it had ever done so until the 2023 shutdown of the Blackwell Northern Railroad. The six EMD locomotives, defaulted on their lease, were returned to their lessor Omni-trax in 1998. Former SP SD9s, leased from Diesel Motive Company (reporting mark BUGX), and former North Coast Railroad GP9s, owned by
8142-523: The NWP run from the Lombard interchange with the California Northern Railroad, up to Windsor. Service consists of about two to three trips north to Petaluma weekly over the line, generally at night to avoid conflict with SMART's daytime-only passenger schedule, and two to three trips to the interchange at Lombard, generally during the day. The railroad predominantly carries grain for dairy and poultry farms in Sonoma County , but also has provided shipment of lumber products out of Windsor, Petaluma and Schellville,
8280-752: The North Coast Railroad and the California Western Railroad. When the CFNR lease of the NWP was terminated, the NCRA via a contractor took over operations using EMD GP9 and SD9 locomotives painted in the SP "Black Widow" colors running both freight service and occasional passenger excursion service from 1996 to 1998. The line was plagued by a series of harsh El Nino storms from 1997 to 1998 causing significant washouts and bridge instability on top of already deferred infrastructure maintenance and mismanagement. The six EMD locomotives, defaulted on their lease, were returned to their lessor Omni-Trax in early 1998 and replaced by SP SD9s leased from Diesel Motive Company (reporting mark BUGX) and former North Coast Railroad GP9s owned by
8418-430: The Northwestern Pacific Ferry Building to Sausalito service. The route from Hyde Street to Sausalito was suspended in 1938 by order of the State Railroad Commission, the last ferry to Alameda ran in 1939, and the Ferry Building to Sausalito service ended February 1941. Many of the large passenger ferries were idled until World War II , when they were mobilized by the federal government to transport military personnel around
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#17327729485058556-924: The Petaluma and Haystack Railroad in 1864. San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad (SF&NP) and Petaluma and Santa Rosa Railroad (P&SR) ferries connected Petaluma River landing locations with San Francisco. North Pacific Coast Railroad (NPC) ferries connected Sausalito with San Francisco, and SF&NP ferries later sailed from Tiburon . Some of these ferries operated on Northwestern Pacific Railroad (NWP) schedules from 1907 to 1938. The Napa Valley Railroad established service in 1865 and connected with ferry boat service in Vallejo, California . Monticello Steamship Company began operating ferries between Vallejo and San Francisco in 1895, and began coordinating with train schedules in 1905. Golden Gate Ferry Company gained control of Monticello in 1927 and, after merging with Southern Pacific, discontinued ferry service to Vallejo in 1937. Sacramento Northern Railway used
8694-443: The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge opened. Most of the ferries were sold for use in Puget Sound, but a few were purchased by the Richmond-San Rafael Ferry Company to shuttle automobiles between Richmond and San Rafael . This last surviving auto ferry route ended when the Richmond–San Rafael Bridge opened in 1956. In 1914, a short-lived seaplane ferry ran between San Francisco and Oakland. From 1930 to 1933,
8832-478: The Southern Pacific and Santa Fe entered into a joint agreement, and in 1906 merged 42 railroad companies between Marin and Humboldt Bay to create one railroad line stretching from Sausalito to Eureka. Prior to completing the line to Eureka, operations over the southern portion of the Northwestern Pacific included daily freight trains #112 and #113 between Willits and Santa Rosa , train #133 between Santa Rosa and Tiburon , trains #153 and #154 between Petaluma and
8970-435: The arts colony reputation that continues today. The 1908 Lawson Report, a study of the 1906 quake led and edited by Professor Andrew Lawson of the University of California, showed that the same San Andreas Fault which had caused the disaster in San Francisco ran close to Los Angeles as well. The earthquake was the first natural disaster of its magnitude to be documented by photography and motion picture footage and occurred at
9108-425: The basis of the chapter "On some Mental Effects of the Earthquake" in his book Memories and Studies . H. G. Wells had just arrived in New York on his first visit to America when he learned of the San Francisco earthquake. What struck him about the reaction of those around him was that "it does not seem to have affected any one with a sense of final destruction, with any foreboding of irreparable disaster. Every one
9246-534: The bay and shipyard workers from San Francisco to Marinship and Richmond Shipyards . The last Southern Pacific ferry ran between Oakland and San Francisco on July 29, 1958. Although earlier ferries had carried teams and wagons, Melrose was launched in 1909 as the first San Francisco Bay ferry built with an unobstructed lower deck specifically intended for automobiles, and an upper deck for passengers. Southern Pacific ferries Melrose and Thoroughfare were designated to carry automobiles to and from San Francisco on
9384-514: The bay, including the San Francisco waterfront and the Berkeley Marina . After ceasing operations in the 1970s it briefly resumed service in 1983 before going out of business in 1986. With the abandonment of the last railroad ferries, there was a brief period 1958–1962 with no commuter ferry service at all on the Bay (though tourist-oriented service to Angel Island began in 1959 ). In March 1962 Red & White Fleet , then known as Harbor Carriers, started commute-hour ferry service from Tiburon to
9522-403: The buildings was renovated for outpatient care with 75 beds. This created the need to train nursing students, and the UC Training School for Nurses was established, adding a fourth professional school to the Affiliated Colleges. The grandeur of citywide reconstruction schemes required investment from Eastern monetary sources, hence the spin and de-emphasis of the earthquake, the promulgation of
9660-597: The city and its "rise from the ashes". Since 1915, the city has officially commemorated the disaster each year by gathering the remaining survivors at Lotta's Fountain , a fountain in the city's financial district that served as a meeting point during the disaster for people to look for loved ones and exchange information. The Army built 5,610 redwood and fir "relief houses" to accommodate 20,000 displaced people. The houses were designed by John McLaren , and were grouped in eleven camps, packed close to each other and rented to people for two dollars per month until rebuilding
9798-425: The city, first by boat and then by train, and vowed never to return to San Francisco. Caruso died in 1921, having remained true to his word. The Metropolitan Opera Company lost all of its traveling sets and costumes in the earthquake and ensuing fires. Some of the greatest losses from fire were in scientific laboratories. Alice Eastwood , the curator of botany at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco,
9936-566: The city, who were reluctant to assist in the rebuilding of homes they were not responsible for. All residents were eligible for daily meals served from a number of communal soup kitchens, and citizens as far away as Idaho and Utah were known to send daily loaves of bread to San Francisco as relief supplies were coordinated by the railroads. Insurance companies, faced with staggering claims of $ 250 million, paid out between $ 235 million and $ 265 million on policyholders' claims, often for fire damage only, since shake damage from earthquakes
10074-551: The damage along the 280-mile-long (450 km) segment of the San Andreas plate boundary. The 1906 rupture propagated both northward and southward for a total of 296 miles (476 km). Shaking was felt from Oregon to Los Angeles, and as far inland as central Nevada . A strong foreshock preceded the main shock by about 20 to 25 seconds. The strong shaking of the main shock lasted about 42 seconds. There were decades of minor earthquakes – more than at any other time in
10212-627: The development of California. At the time of the disaster, San Francisco had been the ninth-largest city in the United States and the largest on the West Coast . Over a period of 60 years, the city had become the financial, trade, and cultural center of the West , operating the busiest port on the West Coast. It was the "gateway to the Pacific", through which growing U.S. economic and military power
10350-777: The earthquake when it became too much trouble for them. Del Monte and another survivor, Rose Cliver (1902–2012), then 106, attended the earthquake reunion celebration on April 18, 2009, the 103rd anniversary of the earthquake. Nancy Stoner Sage (1905–2010) died, aged 105, in Colorado just three days short of the 104th anniversary of the earthquake on April 18, 2010. Del Monte attended the event at Lotta's Fountain in 2010. 107-year-old George Quilici (1905–2012) died in May 2012, and 113-year-old Ruth Newman (1901–2015) in July 2015. William Del Monte (1906–2016), who died 11 days shy of his 110th birthday,
10488-529: The earthquake. Award presentations, religious services, a National Geographic TV movie, a projection of fire onto the Coit Tower, memorials, and lectures were part of the commemorations. The USGS Earthquake Hazards Program issued a series of Internet documents, and the tourism industry promoted the 100th anniversary as well. Eleven survivors of the 1906 earthquake attended the centennial commemorations in 2006, including Irma Mae Weule (1899–2008), who
10626-579: The eastern (North American) plate. This fault runs the length of California from the Salton Sea in the south to Cape Mendocino in the north, a distance of about 810 miles (1,300 km). The maximum observed surface displacement was about 20 feet (6 m); geodetic measurements show displacements of up to 28 feet (8.5 m). The 1906 earthquake preceded the development of the Richter scale by three decades. The most widely accepted estimate for
10764-428: The emergency. Police officers, firefighters, and soldiers would regularly commandeer passing civilians for work details to remove rubble and assist in rescues. On July 1, 1906, non-military authorities assumed responsibility for relief efforts, and the Army withdrew from the city. On April 18, in response to riots among evacuees and looting, Mayor Schmitz issued and ordered posted a proclamation that "The Federal Troops,
10902-441: The fire had the effect of increasing the share of land used for nonresidential purposes: "Overall, relative to unburned blocks, residential land shares on burned blocks fell while nonresidential land shares rose by 1931. The study also provides insight into what held the city back from making these changes before 1906: the presence of old residential buildings. In reconstruction, developers built relatively fewer of these buildings, and
11040-478: The first few days after news of the disaster reached the rest of the world, relief efforts reached over $ 5,000,000, equivalent to $ 169,560,000 in 2023. London raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. Individual citizens and businesses donated large sums of money for the relief effort: Standard Oil and Andrew Carnegie each gave $ 100,000; the Dominion of Canada made a special appropriation of $ 100,000; and even
11178-537: The former alignment between Leddy and Sebastopol. The Trinidad extension reverted to a logging line after NWP service ended in 1933. Sonoma County 's River Road adopted the former alignment of the Guerneville branch from Fulton to Duncans Mills after rails were removed in 1935. Diesels were being used on all trains by 1953, with the exception of ten-wheelers number 181 and 183 pulling passenger trains numbered 3 and 4 between San Rafael and Eureka with number 182 on standby. The #3/#4 trains offered sleeping cars,
11316-613: The former interurban lines. In 1984, the SP sold the north end from Willits to Eureka to Bryan Whipple, who ran it as the Eureka Southern Railroad under the reporting marks EUKA. The Eureka Southern operated freight trains and revamped tourist train service until bankrupted by storm damage in the Eel River Canyon, selling the railroad and most equipment by 1992. In 1984 and 1989, the former Petaluma and Santa Rosa Railroad line from Santa Rosa to Sebastopol
11454-489: The historical record for northern California – before the 1906 quake. Previously interpreted as precursory activity to the 1906 earthquake, they have been found to have a strong seasonal pattern and are now believed to be caused by large seasonal sediment loads in coastal bays that overlie faults as a result of the erosion caused by hydraulic mining in the later years of the California Gold Rush . For years,
11592-512: The initial quake. In total, the fires burned for four days and nights. Most of the destruction in the city was attributed to the fires, since widespread practice by insurers was to indemnify San Francisco properties from fire but not from earthquake damage. Some property owners deliberately set fire to damaged properties to claim them on their insurance. Captain Leonard D. Wildman of the U.S. Army Signal Corps reported that he "was stopped by
11730-583: The international financial system. Gold transfers from European insurance companies to policyholders in San Francisco led to a rise in interest rates, subsequently to a lack of available loans and finally to the Knickerbocker Trust Company crisis of October 1907 which led to the Panic of 1907 . After the 1906 earthquake, global discussion arose concerning a legally flawless exclusion of the earthquake hazard from fire insurance contracts. It
11868-506: The largest urban park in the world, stretching from Twin Peaks to Lake Merced with a large atheneum at its peak. But this plan was dismissed during the aftermath of the earthquake. For example, real estate investors and other land owners were against the idea because of the large amount of land the city would have to purchase to realize such proposals. While the original street grid was restored, many of Burnham's proposals inadvertently saw
12006-410: The light of day, such as a neoclassical civic center complex, wider streets, a preference of arterial thoroughfares, a subway under Market Street , a more people-friendly Fisherman's Wharf , and a monument to the city on Telegraph Hill , Coit Tower . Limestone used to reconstruct city buildings was quarried at the nearby Rockaway Quarry . City fathers likewise attempted at the time to eliminate
12144-474: The line between Willits and Eureka was disrupted by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake ; plans and right-of-way documents were destroyed in the subsequent fire. Engines 8, 12, 19, 104, 153 and 154 were shipped to Eureka by boat in 1911. After a time-expedient "punt" of the route through the unstable Eel River Canyon, construction was finally completed in October 1914 when a "golden spike" ceremony and celebration
12282-799: The line from Willits south to Marin and Schellville, while the AT&;SF controlled line south from Eureka through Humboldt County. Both railroads planned to build a line north, the AT&SF starting with a boat connection in present-day Larkspur, California , and the Southern Pacific, starting at its interchange in American Canyon , north through Napa , Sonoma , Mendocino and Humboldt counties to finally terminate in Eureka. As plans went forward it became clear that only one railroad would be profitable serving Mendocino and Humboldt Counties, so
12420-417: The line which was paralleled by reballasting and replacement of bad ties between Schellville and Windsor. In 2006, NCRA awarded a 99-year lease to NWPco, who would operate trains under reporting mark "NWP." In June 2011, the line was reopened for freight traffic and operations began between Schellville and Windsor, California , 62 miles. In July 2011 the first freight train delivered grain to Petaluma. Trains on
12558-524: The magnitude of the quake on the modern moment magnitude scale is 7.9; values from 7.7 to as high as 8.3 have been proposed. According to findings published in the Journal of Geophysical Research , severe deformations in the Earth's crust took place both before and after the earthquake's impact. Accumulated strain on the faults in the system was relieved during the earthquake, which is the supposed cause of
12696-505: The main means of getting lumber from Humboldt County to market. Rail service to inland areas facilitated local development of the lumber industry. In 1929 the AT&SF sold its half-interest to the Southern Pacific, making the NWP a full SP subsidiary. Passenger service boomed until the 1930s, when improved roads and highways made traveling and shipping by motor vehicle more accessible. By 1935 freight and passenger service diminished because of
12834-544: The maintenance of the same. Beginning in the late 1990s, the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District began purchasing sections of the NWP's south end from the Southern Pacific to save for a potential commuter train route thanks to growing suburbs in Marin and Sonoma counties. The SP required the California Northern Railroad (CFNR) to take over freight operations on the NWP in 1993 as
12972-434: The majority of the reduction came through single-family houses. Also, aside from merely expanding nonresidential uses in many neighborhoods, the fire created economic opportunities in new areas, resulting in clusters of business activity that emerged only in the wake of the disaster. These effects of the fire still remain today, and thus large shocks can be sufficient catalysts for permanently reshaping urban settings." During
13110-654: The members of the Regular Police Force and all Special Police Officers have been authorized by me to kill any and all persons found engaged in Looting or in the Commission of Any Other Crime". Accusations of soldiers engaging in looting also surfaced. Retired Captain Edward Ord of the 22nd Infantry Regiment was appointed a special police officer by Schmitz and liaised with Greely for relief work with
13248-470: The narrow gauge North and South Pacific Coast Railroads . The Key System transit company established its own ferry service in 1903 between the Ferry Building in San Francisco and its own pier and wharf (" mole ") on the Oakland shoreline, located just south of what is today the eastern approach to the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge . Ferries began serving north bay rail connections with
13386-516: The need to rebuild quickly: "This is not the first time that San Francisco has been destroyed by fire, I have not the slightest doubt that the City by the Golden Gate will be speedily rebuilt, and will, almost before we know it, resume her former great activity". The earthquake is not even mentioned in the statement. Fatality and monetary damage estimates were manipulated. Almost immediately after
13524-493: The original Creek Route in 1911. Southern Pacific built new facilities to shift auto routing to the Oakland Pier in 1921 and purchased three new Six Minute ferries . In 1922, Golden Gate Ferry Company (GG) began transporting automobiles between Hyde Street Pier in San Francisco and Sausalito Ferry Terminal in Marin County . Southern Pacific purchased three more auto ferries with a ferry route linking San Francisco with
13662-405: The private Blue & Gold Fleet for the operation of these services. Blue & Gold additionally operates its own tourist-oriented ferry and sightseeing services; together these make the company the largest ferry transportation provider in the Bay Area as of 2022 . Several ferries that had seen service on San Francisco Bay were relocated after the bay bridges were built. Yosemite was sold to
13800-610: The public as a museum and ferry service from San Francisco began under a concession granted by the National Park Service . The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake caused a section of the Bay Bridge road deck to collapse, closing it to all traffic. In response, ferry service was quickly set up between piers in Oakland and Alameda and San Francisco (following almost the same path as the 19th-century "creek route" ferries). This service continued to operate with sponsorship from
13938-682: The public. In 2020, the SB 69 Great Redwood Trail Act was passed, tasked with dissolving the NCRA and the creation of a 320-mile public trail. California's 2018 Great Redwood Trail Act includes detailed plans for investigating and resolving the Authority's debts, dissolving the NCRA, and converting its rights-of-way to rail-trail . In the bill, the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) acquired 21 miles (34 km) from Healdsburg north to
14076-437: The quake (and even during the disaster), planning and reconstruction plans were hatched to quickly rebuild the city. Rebuilding funds were immediately tied up by the fact that virtually all the major banks had been sites of the conflagration, requiring a lengthy wait of seven to ten days before their fire-proof vaults could cool sufficiently to be safely opened. The Bank of Italy (now Bank of America ) had evacuated its funds and
14214-425: The rail line. An example of a 1970s work day on the NWP might look something like the following: During the final decade of Southern Pacific operation, carloads of lumber left Eureka each morning pulled by six EMD SD9 locomotives called "Cadillacs" by their crews. The train might pick up a refrigerator car of butter from Fernbridge and more lumber cars from Fortuna and Scotia before making a meal stop for its crew at
14352-410: The railroad expensive and unreliable after switching to truck traffic made repairs difficult to finance and complete. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) prohibited any train operation north of Willits in 1998. This order was amended in 1999 to allow the connecting California Western Railroad to resume operation to Willits Depot and turn trains on the wye at Willits Yard after agreeing to assist in
14490-482: The rails when the line reopened on 10 December 1979. Remaining traffic revenues were insufficient for track maintenance through the Eel River Canyon, at that time the most expensive stretch of rail line in the United States . In September 1983, the SP announced that it was shutting down the maintenance-intensive NWP line north of Willits. This led to a contentious court battle since the SP did not properly notify
14628-461: The route in 1857. Contra Costa Steam Navigation Company acquired San Antonio Steam Navigation Company with ferries San Antonio and Oakland by merger before being purchased by the San Francisco and Oakland Railroad (SF&O) in 1865. Ferries continued operating along the Creek Route under railroad ownership until 1937. The first railroad ferries on San Francisco Bay were established by
14766-724: The same size more than three years later at 22:45 PST on October 28 near Cape Mendocino. Remotely triggered events included an earthquake swarm in the Imperial Valley area, which culminated in an earthquake of about 6.1 M I at 16:30 PST on April 18, 1906. Another event of this type occurred at 12:31 PST on April 19, 1906, with an estimated magnitude of about 5.0 M I , and an epicenter beneath Santa Monica Bay . Early death counts ranged from 375 to over 500. However, hundreds of fatalities in Chinatown went ignored and unrecorded. The total number of deaths
14904-553: The shaking intensity noted in Andrew Lawson 's 1908 report was the clear correlation of intensity with underlying geologic conditions. Areas situated in sediment -filled valleys sustained stronger shaking than nearby bedrock sites, and the strongest shaking occurred in areas of former bay where soil liquefaction had occurred. Modern seismic-zonation practice accounts for the differences in seismic hazard posed by varying geologic conditions. The shaking intensity as described on
15042-581: The situation required the use of federal troops. Telephoning a San Francisco Police Department officer, he sent word to Mayor Eugene Schmitz of his decision to assist and then ordered federal troops from nearby Angel Island to mobilize and enter the city. Explosives were ferried across the bay from the California Powder Works in what is now Hercules . During the first few days, soldiers provided valuable services like patrolling streets to discourage looting and guarding buildings such as
15180-400: The slightly larger Contra Costa ), to serve the crossing. This railroad ferry actually carried whole trains up to 48 freight cars or 24 passenger cars with their locomotives. These ferries became part of the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) when it assumed many of the facilities of its affiliate, the Central Pacific. These large train ferries were idled when a railway bridge was completed over
15318-404: The southern end of the line from San Francisco Bay to Point Reyes Station at the head of Tomales Bay was completed on 5 April 1920. Freight service between Point Reyes Station and Occidental was reduced to thrice weekly with freight transfer at Point Reyes Station. Lumber production from the lower Russian River valley was ended by a wildfire on 17 September 1923. After the standard-gauge line
15456-488: The success of the SMART train. Although tourist companies along with local historical groups have expressed interest in possibly opening an excursion and dinner train that would traverse Humboldt and Arcata bays, there are no plans to reopen the Eel River Canyon segment. Financial disarray and legal troubles beginning before the turn of the millennium caused the NCRA to fall out of favor with local and state officials as well as
15594-469: The total destruction was the result of the subsequent fires. Within three days, over 30 fires, caused by ruptured gas mains, destroyed approximately 25,000 buildings on 490 city blocks. The fires cost an estimated $ 350 million at the time (equivalent to $ 8.9 billion in 2023). The Ham and Eggs fire, in the morning on the 18th, at Hayes and Gough Streets, in Hayes Valley , was started by
15732-428: The tough new building codes, and subsequent reputation sensitive actions such as the official low death toll. One of the more famous and ambitious plans came from famed urban planner Daniel Burnham . His bold plan called for, among other proposals, Haussmann -style avenues, boulevards, arterial thoroughfares that radiated across the city, a massive civic center complex with classical structures, and what would have been
15870-463: The towns from the coast to the central county. Mileposts conform to Southern Pacific Railroad convention of distance from San Francisco. Ferries of San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay in California has been served by ferries of all types for over 150 years. John Reed established a sailboat ferry service in 1826. Although the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge and
16008-541: The trace of the 1906 rupture, tending to concentrate near the ends of the rupture or on other structures away from the San Andreas Fault, such as the Hayward Fault . The only aftershock in the first few days of near M 5 or greater occurred near Santa Cruz at 14:28 PST on April 18, with a magnitude of about 4.9 M I . The largest aftershock happened at 01:10 PST on April 23, west of Eureka with an estimated magnitude of about 6.7 M I , with another of
16146-535: The train from Willits to Ridge in two sections during later years. The remaining trip down the Russian River to Schellville included a meal stop for the crew at Geyserville. Many Humboldt County mills began shipping lumber in trucks when a fire caused collapse of the Island Mountain tunnel, or tunnel 27, closing the line north of Willits on 6 September 1978, and only half of that traffic returned to
16284-597: The waters of northwestern Washington and southwestern British Columbia . After serving seven years as Elwha , Golden Shore was sold to San Diego in 1944 and renamed Silver Strand on the San Diego-Coronado route. The City of Sacramento operated on the Seattle-Bremerton route in the 1940s, then on the Horseshoe Bay - Nanaimo route from 1952 to 1963 as the MV Kahloke , and finally on
16422-418: The wealthy looked westward where the land was cheap and relatively undeveloped, and where there were better views. Constructing new mansions without reclaiming and clearing rubble simply sped attaining new homes in the tent city during the reconstruction. Reconstruction was swift, and largely completed by 1915, in time for the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition which celebrated the reconstruction of
16560-452: Was a major source of redwood lumber for rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake . The NWP narrow-gauge obtained additional freight cars from the South Pacific Coast Railroad (SPC) as the SPC was converted to standard gauge between 1907 and 1909. Ferries Lagunitas , Ukiah , and Sausalito carried narrow-gauge freight cars across San Francisco Bay from Sausalito to
16698-401: Was able to provide liquidity in the immediate aftermath. Its president also immediately chartered and financed the sending of two ships to return with shiploads of lumber from Washington and Oregon mills which provided the initial reconstruction materials and surge. In an article written in 1913, John C. Branner, who was the first to begin study of the San Andreas fault in 1891 complained that
16836-903: Was acquired by the Sonoma County parks department, and converted into the Joe Rodota Trail for walking and biking. The California Legislature formed the North Coast Railroad Authority (NCRA) in 1989 to save the NWP from total abandonment. NCRA purchased the Eureka Southern in 1992 and leased the line to the newly formed North Coast Railroad In late 1996, severe flooding of the Eel River led to widespread landslide damage and destruction of roadbed which remained unrepaired and halted most service. A lack of capital along with previous customers now finding
16974-652: Was augmented in 1852 by Caleb Cope , the small ferry Hector powered by a steam sawmill engine, and the river packets Jenny Lind and Boston . Boston burned that year and was replaced first by William Brown's San Joaquin River packet Erastus Corning and then by Charles Minturn's river packet Red Jacket . In 1853, Minturn formed the Contra Costa Steam Navigation Company and had the ferry Clinton built expressly for trans-bay service. A second ferry, Contra Costa began operating over
17112-682: Was built as the North Pacific Coast Railroad in 1873 from a San Francisco ferry connection at Sausalito to the Russian River at Monte Rio . Rails were extended downriver to Duncans Mills in 1876, and up Austin Creek to Cazadero in 1886. This narrow-gauge line became the Shore Division of the NWP formed by Santa Fe and Southern Pacific in 1907. Freight traffic was heavy as the lower Russian River valley
17250-496: Was closed on June 30, 1908. Most of the cottages have been destroyed, but at least 30 survived. Of the remaining structures, there is a historically restored pair in the Presidio. Others have been built on as part of private homes, with a high concentration around the Bernal Heights neighborhood. One of the modest 720 sq ft (67 m ) homes was purchased in 2006 for more than $ 600,000. A 2017 study found that
17388-452: Was completed. They were painted navy blue, partly to blend in with the site and partly because the military had large quantities of navy blue paint on hand. The camps had a peak population of 16,448 people, but by 1907 most people had moved out. The camps were then re-used as garages, storage spaces or shops. The cottages cost on average $ 100 to build. The $ 2 monthly rents went towards the full purchase price of $ 50. The last official refugee camp
17526-518: Was discontinued in September 2001 because the operator lacked capital to continue operations. Except for the brief SMART hy-rail inspection trip and few speeder tours, the line lay dormant and out of service until 2007. By 2002, the GGBHTD has purchased most of the “South End” and formed the “SMART District” to oversee funding and potential future operations. In November 2006, Measure R was passed with
17664-512: Was discontinued south of Willits. The only remaining service was a tri-weekly Willits-Eureka round trip, operated by a single Budd Rail Diesel Car , which ran until April 30, 1971. When Amtrak took over intercity passenger rail service on May 1, 1971, it did not continue service on the NWP. The catastrophic Christmas flood of 1964 destroyed 100 miles (160 km) of the railroad in Northern California, including three bridges over
17802-695: Was excluded from coverage under most policies. At least 137 insurance companies were directly involved and another 17 as reinsurers. Twenty companies went bankrupt. Lloyd's of London reports having paid all claims in full, more than $ 50 million, thanks to the leadership of Cuthbert Heath . Insurance companies in Hartford, Connecticut , report paying every claim in full, with the Hartford Fire Insurance Company paying over $ 11 million and Aetna Insurance Company almost $ 3 million. The insurance payments heavily affected
17940-407: Was extended to Cazadero, service north of Point Reyes was reduced to a daily (except Sunday) mixed train to Camp Meeker and return until the last narrow-gauge train ran on 29 March 1930; and the remaining narrow-gauge line between Monte Rio and Point Reyes Station was dismantled that autumn. The route of the dual-gauge line from Fulton to Duncan Mills later became the popular River Road connecting all
18078-415: Was held to mark the accomplishment. The railroad used ferries of San Francisco Bay for freight transfer until connected to the national rail network at Napa Junction by the Santa Rosa and Carquinez Railroad in 1888. The Santa Rosa and Carquinez remained part of SP independent of the NWP with a primary freight interchange at Schellville. SP's Santa Rosa branch continued from Schellville through Sonoma to
18216-679: Was itself a blazing ruin. I believe these people would more than half like the situation." The earthquake was crucial in the development of the University of California, San Francisco and its medical facilities. Until 1906, the school faculty had provided care at the City-County Hospital (now the San Francisco General Hospital ), but did not have a hospital of its own. Following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, more than 40,000 people were relocated to
18354-442: Was operated by the Guerneville branch freight crew as needed to bring infrequent freight down from Cazadero for transfer to the Guerneville branch until the line up Austin Creek to Cazadero was standard-gauged in 1926. Summer tourists from San Francisco still visited Russian River vacation spots via joint narrow-gauge/standard-gauge NWP "triangle" excursions until 1927 when automobile travel became more popular. Standard-gauging of
18492-547: Was possible and necessary: The only way we know of to deal successfully with any natural phenomenon is to get acquainted with it, to find out all we can about it, and thus to meet it on its own grounds. That is the way mankind has succeeded thus far, and it is safe to conclude that it is the only way it will ever succeed. Eleven days after the earthquake a rare Sunday baseball game was played in New York City (which would not allow regular Sunday baseball until 1919) between
18630-465: Was pressed ahead mainly by re-insurers. Their aim: a uniform solution to insurance payouts resulting from fires caused by earthquakes. Until 1910, a few countries, especially in Europe, followed the call for an exclusion of the earthquake hazard from all fire insurance contracts. In the U.S., the question was discussed differently. But the traumatized public reacted with fierce opposition. On August 1, 1909,
18768-488: Was projected into the Pacific and Asia. Over 80% of the city was destroyed by the earthquake and fire. Though San Francisco rebuilt quickly, the disaster diverted trade, industry, and population growth south to Los Angeles, which during the 20th century became the largest and most important urban area in the West. Many of the city's leading poets and writers retreated to Carmel-by-the-Sea where, as "The Barness", they established
18906-413: Was renamed Enetai , returned to San Francisco Bay in 1968, and is preserved at Pier 3. 1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 AM Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI ( Extreme ). High-intensity shaking was felt from Eureka on
19044-667: Was the oldest survivor of the quake at the time of her death in August 2008, aged 109. Vivian Illing (1900–2009) was believed to be the second-oldest survivor at the time of her death, aged 108, leaving Herbert Hamrol (1903–2009) as the last known remaining survivor at the time of his death, aged 106. Another survivor, Libera Armstrong (1902–2007), attended the 2006 anniversary but died in 2007, aged 105. Shortly after Hamrol's death, two additional survivors were discovered. William Del Monte, then 103, and Jeanette Scola Trapani (1902–2009), 106, stated that they stopped attending events commemorating
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