In addition to the large encampments, Genthe also photographed in the small parks and open spaces where clusters of tents with their laundry lines and crude brick cooking stoves often stood next to surviving mansions—a reflection of his interest in class and wealth that was as much a concern during the earthquake and fire as it had been beforehand. (In one photograph, he recorded a long line of people waiting at one of the relief stations that were the only sources of food and supplies for rich and poor alike.)

Genthe’s photographs also show the activities of the city’s reconstruction: men clearing the rubble, brick by brick, with wheelbarrows and horse-drawn carts; carpenters erecting a wooden framework with new lumber; and gleeful citizens packed aboard a streetcar that had returned to service on April 26, only one week after the earthquake. For him, they were the activities that symbolized healing and a population in recovery.

Text by Karin Breuer, Curator in Charge, Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts. Below is a selection of Genthe’s photographs of San Francisco, with additional insights about San Franciscans’ resilience provided by Victoria Binder, Head of Paper Conservation.

To accommodate the large population dislocated by the earthquake, the Army erected military-style tent camps in the city’s parks including the Presidio, then a U.S. Army post. In this scene, a couple resumes the essential activities of daily life, including washing laundry, on the edge of neat rows of tents in the Presidio and the backdrop Marin Headlands.

In the refugee encampments, activities were reduced to the basic chores of daily life. The private lives of displaced San Francisco citizens were brought outside in full view. In this image, a woman mends clothing while people in the background carry pails of water. Water was rationed, and could only be used for drinking, cooking, and washing.

People were not the only ones who had to adjust to a new way of life. There are numerous accounts from the 1906 earthquake describing the rescue of beloved pets. In this quiet scene, a friendly-looking dog and two large birds in cages sit outside a tent. Though the animals’ owner is not present, a peek inside the tent and the surroundings gives a sense of that person’s life, including a sign that says “Photograph Gallery”.

Outside the encampments, clusters of makeshift tents populated small parks and open spaces. In this scene, the daily activities of the displaced citizens of this small tent community stand in stark contrast to the stately mansion overlooking Lafayette Park.

The relief effort for the earthquake was almost immediate. Necessary supplies and food were rationed and distributed to all San Francisco citizens, regardless of wealth and social stranding, through relief stations positioned throughout the city. In this image, a long line of people awaits their rations in Jefferson Square with the ruins of the old City Hall looming in the background.

Clothing was in short supply, as many people fled their homes in the aftermath of the quake with few belongings. Within weeks, garment donations poured into San Francisco. In this scene, women sift through piles of clothing. Behind them stands the McElroy family Octagon House, badly damaged by the earthquake. The house was restored in 1951 through the efforts of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America and now stands at 2645 Gough Street.

Even as the devastated city still lay smoking, the clearing of rubble and the rebuilding process began. Workers cleared piles of bricks throughout the city. Often, ordinary citizens on the streets were directed by the military to pick up fallen bricks. Arnold Genthe was tasked with picking up rubble several times while he was out taking pictures.

The rebuilding of San Francisco was immediate and swift, reflecting the resilient energy of its citizens. In this image taken just weeks after the earthquake, carpenters constructed the wooden frame of a building among the surrounding ruins.

This scene shows a streetcar on lower Market Street packed with excited citizens and sightseers. On April 26, 1906, eight days after the earthquake, the streetcars began running downtown again.

Learn more about the Paper Conservation Lab, and browse more works from the Achenbach Foundation for Graphics Arts.

Discover more about Genthe's earthquake images in this video.