Stories
This web site is the outgrowth of a trilogy of books based on first-hand accounts written by men, women, and children who were in San Francisco during the period 1835–1906. Its primary purpose is to share some of these stories with a wider audience than can be reached by the books alone. Secondly, we hope the site will encourage people—wherever in the world they may be—to share with us any similar first-person accounts they may have, either in their own family possession or at their local libraries or historical societies.
These first-hand accounts are emotional bridges to the past, revealing human frailties with which many of us today can relate. They give us insight into what it must have been like living through historic events or time frames. In other words, they give life to history!
It collapsed in 60 seconds during the earthquake of April 18, 1906.
Below is a list of extracts you can read on this site. For a broader idea of topics and names included in the books (not necessarily on this site), use the search feature. For the sake of authenticity, no attempt has been made to modernize the spelling, punctuation, or sentence structure in these stories.
- 1835 Before Golden Gate Bridge was built. Richard Henry Dana
- 1846 Raising the flag. Joseph T. Downey
- 1851 French women in Gold Rush days. Albert Benard de Russailh
- 1851 Cost of living in 1851. Albert Benard de Russailh
- 1861 Bummer meets Lazarus. Anon.
- 1877 The streets of San Francisco in 1877. Guillermo Prieto
- 1877 Tourists in an opium den. Miriam Florence Leslie
- 1889 Rudyard Kipling rides the cable car. Rudyard Kipling
- 1906 “I was buried and in complete darkness.” William Stehr
- 1906 Jack London and the fleeing refugees. Jack London
- 1906 Caruso’s version of 1906 quake. Enrico Caruso