On April 18, 1906, at 5:12 a.m., the city of San Francisco was shocked when a severe earthquake shook the city. Many of its abruptly awakened citizens ran through the streets as buildings crumbled around them. The earthquake itself was only the beginning of the immense devastation of the day.
As the tremors subsided, many fires broke out as a result of severed electrical wires. The winds of the bay area spread the flames throughout the city. Fire hoses were rendered useless because of broken water mains, allowing flames to rage uncontrolled for three full days. Four square miles of the city were charred before the fire finally suffocated itself.
The people of San Francisco fled from the flames to any protected space, mobilizing their families by any means possible, including carts, wagons, carriages and wheelbarrows. Many found the suburbs and countryside to be a safe haven, while thousands crowded into the Golden Gate Park. Military troops were deployed to maintain order, and the Army was the first to provide relief in the form of breadlines and tents for the 200,000 misplaced persons.
The Nation Responds
With all communication to the rest of the nation cut off, many Americans across the country underestimated the death toll. After the initial reports, popular misconceptions numbered the death count at less than 500, but the actual total was approximately 3,000. In addition to these casualties, the plight of the survivors reflected the enormous scope of this catastrophe.
Support from the nation was overwhelming. Congress immediately appropriated $2,500,000 ($54million in today's dollars) filled with emergency supplies rushed to the city. So many doctors and nurses volunteered their services that authorities ultimately turned down the aid of some willing medical professionals.
President Roosevelt bypassed the governing board of the American Red Cross and declared that the organization was the best one to undertake the relief operation, describing the Red Cross as "the only organization chartered and authorized by Congress to act at times of great national calamity."
The Red Cross was faced with a challenge that greatly exceeded any of its previous relief efforts. Not only did the scale of this disaster surpass Red Cross experience, the organization had been freshly reorganized the year before, had no financial reserves and no individual working at headquarters with previous disaster relief experience. A leader of the relief contribution campaign in Illinois, Ernest Bicknell, who would later become a national director of the Red Cross, referred to this case as "a supreme test and a supreme opportunity."
Getting Started in San Francisco
When the Red Cross began work the next day, it was not welcomed with open arms by the people of San Francisco despite their urgent need. The city already had established the San Francisco Committee of Fifty to lead the relief effort. The San Francisco Chronicle harshly criticized the Red Cross for meddling in affairs that should be handled by the people of San Francisco and remarked that an independent organization spearheading the relief efforts reflected negatively on the integrity of the city.
Only tactful negotiations resulting in sharing of all funds (with the exception of the congressional appropriation) allowed the Red Cross to coexist with local relief efforts. As a result, an organization entitled the San Francisco Relief and Red Cross Funds, a Corporation, was formed to monitor and distribute the $8,508,362 that was collected through public contributions.
The Army remained primarily responsible for providing food and shelter for the population, while the Red Cross faced the challenge of handling the general rehabilitation of the displaced citizens. Dr. Edward T. Devine, the General Secretary of the Charity Organization Society of New York who was appointed by President Roosevelt to represent the Red Cross in San Francisco, was in charge of this relief operation until he was succeeded by Bicknell.
After the chaos caused by the initial shock subsided, the city was divided into districts, each represented by a central committee. A strict system of analyzing need and verifying the legitimacy of requests for help was developed to evaluate each claim and account for every dollar received and spent. As a result of this system, granting aid became a long and arduous process and the Bureau of Special Relief was formed and given the power to bypass the approval process in severe cases.
Broadening Relief Operations
After the Army completed its responsibility, the need for relief continued. The Red Cross broadened its relief operations to include the following:
Provide food kitchens throughout the city where citizens could use food tickets or pay ten cents for a hot meal
Construct simple houses made of rough lumber to replace the large, communal tents and shacks that were provided by the Army
Financially reward citizens up to $500 for rebuilding permanent homes on burned land
Reestablish the business district by providing craftsmen with tools and tradesman with goods. This aid allowed citizens to once again sustain themselves, their families and their communities. People who needed money to reestablish their livelihood were given loans up to $500. (The Red Cross later adopted a policy against lending relief funds.)
Remaining available funds were distributed to people in various forms based on need in order to allow as many people as possible to regain independence.
With the broadened action of the Red Cross came broadened criticism. The lengthy aid application process caused many complaints despite the creation of the Special Relief Bureau. The food kitchens were criticized due to rumors of a profit being made by the independent contractor operating the kitchens. The most intense public outcry came after a plan to auction excess donated flour at the expense of the local milling industry was introduced. As a result, the excess flour was reserved for export only. Finally, there were typical criticisms of the distribution of funds despite the extensive verification system.
Despite these criticisms, the overall relief effort was a success. San Francisco could not have recovered as rapidly without the generosity of the American people and the Red Cross as their instrument of compassion.
Although the San Francisco Chronicle still maintained that local relief operations were the most effective, it publicly thanked the Red Cross for its contributions. Newspapers across the country recognized the organization for helping the victims of the earthquake and fires. A writer in Overland Monthly predicted that "When the people of San Francisco regard the aftermath of the earthquake and fire in the growing perspective of time, the work of the Red Cross Society.will be appreciated more and more. The half can never be told of their devotion to their duty and high ideals."
Although the Red Cross was only one of the relief organizations that played a role in restoring San Francisco, it met the challenge of successfully restoring an area after a large scale catastrophe and forever proved its worth in times of crisis.
Sources of Additional Information
Books about the American Red Cross
Foster Rhea Dulles, The American Red Cross. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1950. A general history of the ARC from its beginnings to mid-point in the last century. Out of print but available in some libraries.
Patrick F. Gilbo, The American Red Cross: The First Century. New York: Harper and Row, 1981. An illustrated history of the organization's first century, 1881-1981. Out of print but available in some libraries.
http://blog.wellsfargo.com/GuidedByHistory/
Sponsored by Wells Fargo Bank, the blog puts into context the events of 1906 earthquake in a way that they hope will compel people to prepare for future emergencies. The blog also features material from their archives.
http://www.sfmuseum.org/1906/06.html
Virtual Museum of San Francisco website with many links to pages about different aspects of the earthquake, response, and recovery.
Previous Page