Laura Zieman

San Francisco - April 18,1906: 100th Anniversary of the Earthquake and Fire Laura Zieman

The scene is set, a beautiful spring morning in San Francisco, just a few days after the Easter holiday. Spring flowers bloom, erasing the tedium of winter. The air is crisp and clean, a soft bay breeze escorts the gulls soaring above. A new day is dawning, and the city is awakening. Paperboys prepare to deliver the morning news, vendors hitch their horses to their produce carts, streets are washed down, and the smell of coffee from the roastery permeates the air. April 18, 1906, one hundred years ago. What started as a beautiful spring day soon turned into a nightmare for the citizens of San Francisco. The devastating quake struck with such a force as to throw people from their beds, split open streets, crumble monumental buildings, and render the city helpless, all within a few seconds. With a damaged infrastructure, the fire that erupted consumed all in its path, turning this once glorious city into a pile of ashes. The story of this cataclysmic quake and subsequent fire is told through the eyes of a young girl named Bina who lived through this tumultuous time. She became fascinated with the images of the postcards depicting the sights and events she experienced, and with the help of family and friends put together the scrapbook presented within these pages.