Shaky Earth in 1906

  Humboldt County is the most seismically active area in the continental United States. Off our shores is a triple junction of earth plates that constantly collide with each other causing quakes from the hardly noticed, to the dish rattling kind, to the headline making destructive ones.

            Quakes in the area were reported in the stories of indigenous tribes, including the estimated 9 magnitude earthquake in 1700 that helped shape our current Humboldt Bay. The early European settlers recorded quakes here from the 1850s on. But for most of the world, when you say California and Earthquake one event comes to mind: 1906 San Francisco.

            That was The Big One. The 8.3 magnitude quake and the fire that followed destroyed much of the city. But the earthquake faults that San Francisco rests on extend north as well.

            Early in the morning of April 18, 1906, some Humboldt residents were shaken out of bed, chimneys fell and buildings were knocked off their foundations. Ferndale suffered the worst with store fronts toppling into Main Street and fissures opening. Enough people had cameras then to record the devastation. They did so as well in Eureka where streets buckled and building facades collapsed.

            Most notable, perhaps was the 1880s courthouse where the crowning statue of Minerva was twisted into a perilous angle. That poor courthouse continued to suffer seismically over the years, and a 6.6 quake in 1954 caused enough damage to eventually lead to the building’s demolition – to be replaced by the current architectural monstrosity.

            But back to 1906. When telegraph and other communication was restored, suffering Humboldt learned of even greater devastation in San Francisco. The steamer Pomona was quickly dispatched, loaded with food and clothing for displaced San Francisco residents. The return ship brought many refugees up to Humboldt.

            Earth and history continue to bind Humboldt to the rest of California. For over a century since the 1906 Big One, earthquakes have regularly shaken our area. Photographs, news reports and personal accounts continually come into the Humboldt County Historical Society for preservation and study. Unlike some of our collection categories, the earthquake files are open ended. They, unfortunately, will continue to be added to.

1906 earthquake damage on the hill beside Shelter Cove. Photo taken by Arthur Eakle.