wheretogo Visit a Novel in San Francisco


San Francisco City Hall (left) was almost completely destroyed by the earthquake and subsequent fires that took place the morning of April 18, 1906. A man (above) stares at what is left of old Chinatown.


1906, by James Dalessandro (Chronicle Books, 2004), starts 72 hours before the Great San Francisco Earthquake. It follows the dedicated Graft Hunters, who, with President Theodore Roosevelt’s blessing, sought to expose public fi gures whose malfeasance in the city’s wa- terworks largely was responsible for the terrible fi re that followed the earthquake. Historical fi gures include actor John Barrymore and opera singer Enrico Caruso, who performed in Carmen at the Mission Opera House the night before the quake. Meticulous research reveals the horrors of the


quake and resulting three-day fi restorm, with people fastening wheels to armoires to remove property and dynamiting countless undamaged properties in a futile attempt to create a fi rebreak. The only operational hos- pital was the Army Hospital at the Presidio, and Navy ships steamed north from Monterey to fi ght the terrible blaze along the waterfront. Although the offi cial death count was 478 — an attempt to downplay the perils of


22 MILITARY OFFICER APRIL 2017


future earthquakes in the still-young city — it’s esti- mated at least 3,000 souls perished. For those visiting San Francisco today, the California


Academy of Sciences (www.calacademy.org) has a major seismic exhibit, which includes a walk-through model of Earth (right) and a remark- able earthquake simulator re- creating both the 7.9-magni- tude quake of 1906 and the 6.9-magnitude 1989 Loma Prieta temblor. The academy also has developed a free online earthquake course, which is available for download at iTunes U. — Col. Glenn Pribus, USAF (Ret), and Marilyn Pribus


IMAGES: ABOVE, CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES; TOP, SHUTTERSTOCK


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