Each week, beginning today, Bowdoin Chief Information Officer Mitch Davis will offer a look at news and trends in technology, gadgets, inventions, or just something worth checking out. It’s called “One Cool Thing.”
One of the most significant earthquakes of modern times ripped through San Francisco 104 years ago this week, killing more than 3,000 people and devastating the city. This film, from a streetcar traveling down Market Street, was shot just four days earlier. You can clearly see the clock tower at the end of the street at the Embarcadero. The quality & detail is great, so be sure to view it full screen.
It was originally thought that the film dated to 1905 until David Kiehn with the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum figured out exactly when it was shot. Kiehn looked at the shadows, the weather conditions, and even the car registrations to determine that the film was actually shot on April 14, 1906, just four days before the deadly quake. The film survived because it was already on its way to New York by train to be processed.
Amazing but true!
