[Ammi]

..and thank you, Niamh......really amazing photographs....


Since 2010, San Francisco photographer Shawn Clover has been working on a striking series of then and now composite photos of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. To create the series, Clover collected archival photos of the earthquake’s aftermath. He then replicated the photos himself, down to the location, camera position and focal length (to the best of his estimation). The resulting composite photos hauntingly combine stark images of the earthquake’s devastation with modern scenes of life in San Francisco...





Pedestrians cross Jones St towards a pile of rubble on Market Street. The Hibernia Bank building is burned out, but still standing strong

[Ammi]

Some business people and a young kid face the camera while fire consumes a building on the corner of Franklin St and Hayes St

[Ammi]

A women opens the door to her Mercedes on Sacramento Street while horses killed by falling rubble lie in the street

[Ammi]

A woman walks dangerously close to a pit of rubble on 5th St by the US Mint. The Mint has done a remarkable job surviving the quake

[Ammi]

Two girls stand before the partially destroyed Sharon Building in Golden Gate Park while students work on their art projects inside

[Ammi]

Shoppers cross Drumm St on Market St while men busily work at the monumental task of rebuilding a destroyed city

[Ammi]

A cable car heads towards the California St incline while shocked residents walk aimlessly through street amidst the devastation

[Ammi]

Men pose in a tent city to house displaced residents while an armored car turns left. Ferry Building repairs have begun

[Ammi]

Happy tourists pass by the Fairmont Hotel, which still stands, but is destroyed inside from the fires

[Ammi]

Passing cable cars offer a view of the destruction of California Street. Old St. Marys Cathedral has escaped destruction

[Ammi]

Residents take to the grass at Lafayette Park to get a view of the massive fires engulfing the city while a Muni bus stops below

[Ammi]

Pedestrians walk past Mechanics Monument at Bush Street and Battery Street while ghostly shells of buildings stand precariously in the background

[Ammi]

The Painted Ladies have escaped fire raging down the street. Mothers rest on the low wall in Alamo Square while their children play on the grass

[Ammi]

Cable car #455 rests halfway in the partially-detroyed cable car barn

[Ammi]

People cross Market Street in front of the destroyed Hearst Building

[Ammi]

Cars travel down S. Van Ness, which has buckled after the quake

[Ammi]

People walk through rubble on Geary St

[Ammi]

A bicyclist rides towards the fallen Valencia St. Hotel and a huge sinkhole that has opened up in the street

[Ammi]

People walk up California St amid charred scraps of lumber

[Ammi]

Cars park in front of the brand new US Courthouse which faired well in the quake

[Ammi]

People stroll by the original adobe Mission Dolores which survived, while the brick church next door was destroyed

[Ammi]

Horse carriages and cars park in front of Lafayette Park while a destroyed city looms in the background

[Ammi]

People walk beneath Old Saint Mary's Cathedral, which survived the quake but was gutted by the fire

[Ammi]

People mill around Lotta's Fountain, which served as a meeting place after the quake

[Ammi]

The Conservatory of Flowers stands undamaged as now-homeless citizens camp in a tent shelter