Disaster! : The Great San Francisco Earthquake and Fire of 1906

by Kurzman, Dan

• ISBN13: 9780060084325
• ISBN10: 0060084324
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2002-04-01
• Publisher: Perennial

Summary

On the morning of April 18, 1906, an earthquake measuring 8.3 on the Richter scale ripped through sleeping San Francisco. At the Palace Hotel, opera star Enrico Caruso fled, half dressed, into the street; John Barrymore searched through the chaos for a bar where he could get a whiskey; orphans screamed for parents crushed to death in their beds. Drawing on contemporary reports and eye-witness accounts, Dan Kurzman captures the fear and madness that raged through a city reduced to rubble. But in this breathtaking pastiche of real-life tragedies, the author also records acts of extraordinary courage. As many as 10,000 people died in the quake and fires that followed, yet the rugged populace refused to quit the city, vowing instead to resurrect it from the ashes. Now, the past comes alive again in this unforgettable history, a masterful account of nature at its worst...and indomitable American spirit at its best.

Author Biography

Dan Kurzman, a former Washington Post correspondent, is the author of fourteen books and the winner of five literary and journalistic awards

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xiii
People in the Book	xvii
Map of San Francisco, 1906	xxi
Preface	xxiii
Prologue	1	(6)
Caruso and the Odor of Roses	7	(5)
Barrymore Slept Here	12	(2)
Sullivan's Nightmare	14	(7)
The Nectar of Corruption	21	(8)
The Banker and the Boy	29	(3)
Cook's Tour of a Cataclysm	32	(5)
The End of the World	37	(7)
Birth and Death	44	(5)
The Miser and the Melting Pot	49	(2)
The Accordion and the Cops	51	(5)
The Dishware and the Dragons	56	(7)
The Crackle of Terror	63	(6)
The Cruel Trap	69	(3)
Napoleon to the Rescue	72	(9)
Inoculating the Mayor	81	(8)
The Lord, the King, and the Executioners	89	(5)
Succumbing to Catastrophe	94	(5)
The Puny Millionaires	99	(5)
Not Even the Dead Were Safe	104	(4)
The Vengeful Demons	108	(7)
The Tongue of a Poisonous Snake	115	(5)
The Angel and the Newborn	120	(4)
Criminals in Uniform	124	(12)
Bringing Out the Best	136	(5)
The Case for the Fire	141	(6)
A Proud Ending	147	(4)
Ravagement, Racism, and Rats	151	(9)
The Persian Cat	160	(6)
Black News and White Tails	166	(5)
The Home Bank and the Burned Home	171	(4)
A Vow to Love and a Vow to Die	175	(5)
Misery, Murder, and Mastery	180	(6)
Running a Gauntlet	186	(4)
From Prayer to Action	190	(3)
Dynamite and Desperation	193	(8)
A Fruit Dish and a Cup of Tea	201	(7)
The Lure of Rare Wine	208	(4)
The Ghoulish Lion	212	(8)
The Deadline and the Doorknob	220	(3)
A Last Stand	223	(5)
Rise from the Ruins	228	(20)
Epilogue	248	(9)
Notes	257	(12)
Bibliography	269	(18)
Index	287