« San Francisco Burns »

This is an original 1906 cabinet card (not postcard) taken from a high vantage point where the urban district gives way to less formally laid out avenues and housing. It was an excellent choice to show the extent of the fires that followed the earthquake. People can be seen standing in groups on the street watching anxiously, perhaps wondering if the fires will reach their own properties. In the foreground you can see personal property stacked on the ground and some of it covered for protection, a few people appear to guard against theft. Are we seeing the property of people who have fled the fires in the distance, or is it from nearby homes in anticipation of the possible need to evacuate?

The photo paper is quite coarse and has a matte finish, the prominent fibers almost make the image appear to be an etching instead of a photograph. The shadow cast by a street lamp indicates the time is about mid-morning and the light is strong in spite of the smoke.