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The catastrophe known as the “The Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906” launched the serious study of earthquakes and the geology of California. Many articles and papers have been written about the San Andreas Fault System, a part of which was shaken by the earthquake. Together these articles form a body of knowledge which helped lead to the theory of plate tectonics.

The 1906 earthquake was a result of transform plate movement. This occurs when tectonic plates move sideways and rub against each other. The earth shook for about a minute on April 18, 1906 at 5:12 in the morning. It measured about 7.8 on the Richter Scale. The damage was devastating. More than 3,000 people were killed and many thousands were injured by the quake and resulting fires.

Thousands of small, imperceptible earthquakes occur in the Bay Area each year. Only a handful make local news. However, in the period from 1800 to the present, the San Francisco Bay region has been shaken by 21 earthquakes measuring 6.0 or higher on the Richter Scale.

Point Reyes, just north of San Francisco, is one of the best places to actually see the San Andreas Fault — and the impact of the 1906 earthquake. A walk along the Earthquake Trail in the Point Reyes National Seashore gives visitors a chance to examine the remaining traces of the great quake, see the history in pictures and read some of the personal stories — real and imagined — of those living in Point Reyes at the time.

The Story of the Fallen Cow

Signs along the trail at Point Reyes also explain the legend of Matilda the cow, who was supposedly swallowed by the crack that opened up in the earth. After the quake caused ferocious fires 35 miles away in San Francisco, it took a few days for reporters to find their way to the sleepy hamlet of Olema. When they arrived, they were led to a gaping hole where Matilda lay upside down.

It was a good story, with headlines shouting, "Fault swallows cow whole." However, locals whispered that a farm boy was having fun with reporters from the big city. It seems that Matilda had died of natural causes and the hole seemed a convenient place to bury her.

Here is the story according to the official report (G.K. Gilbert, US Geological Survey Geologist in Report of the State Earthquake Investigation Commission, 1908):

“In this connection mention may be made of the fact that at the Shafter Ranch a fault crevice was momentarily so wide as to admit a cow, which fell in head first and was thus entombed. The closure that immediately followed, left only the tail visible …at the time of my visit the tail had disappeared being eaten by dogs, but there was abundant testimony to substantiate the statement. At this point the fault trace was a trench 6 or 8 feet wide, and the general level of the soil blocks within it was 1 or 2 feet below that of the adjacent undisturbed ground.”

Here is the “unofficial” story, recalled by H.H. Howard, whose family owned the ranch in the pictures above. He describes a conversation he overheard as a boy in 1912:

“… In all events, there sat [my cousin] Payne astride his horse facing us, his hat down over his eyes, and Father and I on the bench there [by the barn]. The two men talked briefly and then for no reason I can remember my father said to Payne, I paraphrase, “Payne, why on earth did you tell those reporters that your cow was swallowed up by the crack in the earth?” To which Payne replied, I again paraphrase, 'Look, Pax, the cow had died, and we had to bury her. That night along came the earthquake which opened up a big crack in the ground; we simply dragged the carcass over to the crack and tipped it in, with the feet sticking out. Then along came those newspaper reporters and when they got the idea that the cow had fallen in, we weren’t about to spoil a good story. Why spoil it now?'“