1906 Earthquake Cottages

Two restored earthquake cottages from the 1906 earthquake relief effort here in the Presidio.

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

The devastating earthquake and subsequent fires of 1906 displaced tens of thousands of city residents. Some 75,000 San Franciscans simply left after the disaster, but an even greater number, 250,000 homeless, stayed in the city and formed makeshift communities. During the crisis, the US Army managed 21 of the 26 emergency camps including four on the Presidio. Fortunately, the army had a large supply of tents on hand from the Spanish American War, which they provided as immediate shelter.


As winter approached, 5,300 'earthquake cottages' were built. Modest though these structures were, they were an attractive offer that housed over 16,000 refugees at the height of their popularity. Trying to avoid permanent settlements of the cottages, the $2.00 a month rent went towards the purchase price of $50.00. Once purchased, residents were required to relocate their cottages from the camps. In today's SF housing market, two bucks a month to own in two years is quite the attractive rental offer, even without electricity.


The 1906 earthquake left more than half of San Francisco's citizens homeless. Roughly 500 square blocks of downtown were reduced to rubble, including the decades-old immigrant neighborhood, Chinatown. Amid chaos and tragedy, city officials attempted to displace the Chinese community from the neighborhood they had called home since 1870 to the less desirable Hunter's Point area.

Chinese and the 1906 Earthquake

The 1906 earthquake left more than half of San Francisco's citizens homeless. Roughly 500 square blocks of downtown were reduced to rubble, including the decades-old immigrant neighborhood, Chinatown. Amid chaos and tragedy, city officials attempted to displace the Chinese community from the neighborhood they had called home since 1870 to the less desirable Hunter's Point area.

The earthquake's leveling force was so devastating that of the 15,000 Chinese living in Chinatown before the quake, only 400 remained in the aftermath. Most moved to Oakland to start over. In the days immediately following the disaster, the army rounded up the Chinese that remained in San Francisco and relocated them to a windy section of the Presidio near the area where Fort Scott stands today.

After a drawn out battle, the plan to permanently relocate the Chinese community never came to pass thanks to community resistance and the realization by city officials that they stood to lose lucrative trade with the far East and tax revenue if they went through with the move. The Chinese community returned to and rebuilt Chinatown, an enduring San Francisco icon.