News Release

Two major exhibitions capturing different aspects of the 1906 earthquake and fire will highlight the San Francisco Public Library’s commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the natural disaster.

In a groundbreaking exhibition, Snapshot Chronicles: Inventing the American Photo Album features personal photo albums made by San Francisco residents and tourists to the City who witnessed and took photos of the 1906 catastrophe. Historical earthquake photographs and postcards from the Library’s San Francisco History Center will also be included in the exhibition. The exhibition will be on display April 8–Aug. 20 in the Jewett Gallery at the Main Library.

On the lighter side, How to Survive an Earthquake: A Humorous Look at San Francisco, 1906 examines how San Franciscans turned the disaster into gold, using wit and humor as their tools to rebuild their beloved city and regain some semblance of everyday life. The exhibition will be on display April 1–May 31 in the Skylight Gallery at the Main Library.

A full list of all earthquake-related exhibitions, programs and events at the Library follows:

Exhibitions

• Skylight Gallery: *How to Survive an Earthquake: A Humorous Look at San Francisco, 1906 – Exhibition describes how earthquake survivors used shared humor as a survival tactic, and features first-person and newspaper accounts, artifacts, photographs and ephemera from the San Francisco History Center, as well as contemporary works of humor from the Schmulowitz Collection of Wit and Humor (SCOWAH), Book Arts & Special Collections Center. April 1 – May 31. Main, 6th Floor, Skylight Gallery
  
  
• Jewett Gallery: *Snapshot Chronicles: Inventing the American Photo Album: Featuring Personal Albums Documenting the 1906 Earthquake and Fire – Celebrates the visual creativity, storytelling and social history of early snapshot photograph albums, from 1889 to1935. Exhibition is from the collection of Barbara Levine, organized by the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Gallery at Reed College, and includes materials from the Library’s San Francisco History Center. April 8 – Aug. 20. Main, Lower Level, Jewett Gallery. Opening Program: Walkthrough and Book Signing with curator Barbara Levine, 2 p.m., April 9, Main, Lower Level, Jewett Gallery
  
  
• Other Exhibition Areas in the Library:
  
  
• *Remembering the Big One, Preparing for the Next One – Includes earthquake preparedness plans, historical photographs, seismic maps and government investigative reports. Through June 1. Main, 5th Floor, Government Information Center
  
  
• *Bernal Heights Earthquake Centennial 1906–2006 – Historic photographs and maps of neigborhood. Co-sponsored by Bernal Heights Preservation. Exhibition: April 1 – 30. Good Life grocery story windows, 448 Cortland Ave. (across the street from Bernal Heights Branch). Related Programs: Earthquake Shack Walking Tour – April 22. Tour starts at 11 a.m. from 43 Carver St.; colloquy and ice cream social to follow at 2 p.m. at Bernal Heights Branch. Earthquake Centennial Picnic at Precita Park: April 29, 12 noon. Call (415) 355-2810 for more information.
  
  
• Marking the 1906 Earthquake: San Francisco Off Balance: Ballet Mori and More – The Bernard Osher Art, Music and Recreation Center and the Business, Science and Technology Center presents a floorwide display of books, documents and photos highlighting earthquake related resources. Through April 27. Main, 4th Floor wall display cases
  
  
• Digging Deep: Underneath San Francisco Public Library –The archaeological remains of a Gold Rush era cemetery and ruins of old City Hall (destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire) document the development of the Civic Center area. Through 2006. Main, 1st Floor, Grove Street entrance exhibit cases
  
  
• Programs
  
  
• April 5
  Sunset Branch Monthly Book Club – Selection: A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906, by Simon Winchester. Café Kaleo Upstairs Room, 1340 Irving St. (between 14th and 15th Ave.), 7 p.m.
  
  
• April 9
  *Snapshot Chronicles: Inventing the American Photo Album: Featuring Personal Albums Documenting the 1906 Earthquake and Fire – Opening Program: Gallery Talk and Book Signing with Curator Barbara Levine. 2 p.m., Main, Lower Level, Jewett Gallery
  
  
• April 11
  *Lesbian to the Rescue: Dr. Marie Equi and the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Relief – Dr. Equi rushed from Oregon to assist earthquake victims; includes one-hour slide review of “the stormy petrel of the Northwest,” by Michael Helquist. Co-sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society. 7 – 8:30 p.m., Eureka Valley,
  
  
• April 15
  *Chinatown is Burning! – Charlie Chin presents performance celebrating 1906 earthquake survivor Hugh Liang, who witnessed the rebuilding of his community. Co-sponsored by the Chinese Historical Society of America. 2 – 3 p.m., Main, Lower Level, Koret Auditorium
  
  
• April 18
  1906 Earthquake and Fire Online Resources – Exploration of web sites and databases depicting how the disaster affected San Francisco. 12:10 – 1 p.m., Main, Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room
  
  
• April 18
  *San Francisco is Burning: The Untold Story of the 1906 Earthquake and Fire – Dennis Smith, author of San Francisco is Burning, discusses the 1906 quake and its tragic aftermath. 6 – 8 p.m., Main, Koret Auditorium
  
  
• April 19
  We Were There: Voices from the Earthquake and Fire of 1906 – Malcolm Barker and Joanne Lafler present first-hand survivor accounts, through photos and readings from letters, journals and unpublished memoirs. 6 – 7:30 p.m., Main, Koret Auditorium
  
  
• April 20
  Disaster Preparedness Workshop for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People – Conducted by Christine Seymour; closed captioned and interpreted in American Sign Language (ASL). 4:30 – 7:30 p.m., Main, Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room
  
  
• April 22
  *Earthquake Shack Walking Tour of Bernal Heights – Co-sponsored by Bernal Heights Preservation. Tour: 11 a.m., 43 Carver St. Colloquy and Ice Cream Social: 2 p.m., Bernal Heights
  
  
• April 27
  Rebuilding San Francisco: The Workers’ Story – T.V. documentary profiling post-earthquake tradesmen; followed by a panel of building trades workers. 6 – 7:45 p.m., Main, Koret Auditorium
  
  
• April 29
  *Earthquake Centennial Picnic at Precita Park – Features shack dwellers; wear Edwardian costume and help build a shack! Co-sponsored by Bernal Heights Preservation. 12 noon, Precita Park (between Folsom and Alabama streets). Call (415) 355-2810 for more information.
  
  
• Other Related Items:
  
  
• On the Same Page: San Francisco Reads
  April selection: A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906, by Simon Winchester. For more information: www.sfpl.org/news/sanfranreads/sfreads.htm
  
  
• San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection: Photos of the Great Fire and Earthquake of 1906 – Contains over 1,700 digitized images, including neighborhoods, buildings, refugee camps and reconstruction process. www.sfpl.org/librarylocations/sfhistory/equake-browse.htm.
  
  

* Sponsored by Friends of the San Francisco Public Library

All exhibitions and programs at the Library are free.
Info: (415) 557-4277, or www.sfpl.org.