Hi All. I have a feeling the weird little blonde haired lady is going to enjoy this.

The Daly City quake wasn’t a heart stopper in any sense of the word, but the following is what happened when the area was hit by an M>5.3 earthquake. I wonder what it would have been like if the quake was an M>7.3, or an M>8.3.

The strongest shock since the 1906 earthquake was experienced by San Francisco and the Bay Area at 11:45:20 on the morning of Friday, March 22, 1957. It registered 5.3 on the Richter scale and, for a whole new generation of the local population, it was the greatest earthquake they had ever experienced.

Earlier in the day two other quakes had been felt. The first, at 8:38 a.m., was 3 on the Richter scale, and the second, at 10:48 a.m., registered 3.75. No lives were lost, there were no serious injuries, and structural damage to homes was slight, although a large number of homes in the Westlake--Palisades--Daly City area suffered more or less superficial damage, generally confined to exterior plaster.

The quake was centered on the San Andreas fault near Daly City. Damage to buildings in San Francisco was noted throughout the city, but was most extensive in the western portions. This earthquake, along with the 1906 and 1989 jolts, continues to be studied by scientists. Subsequent investigation indicates that the 1957 earthquake may have been centered near the epicenter of the Great Earthquake of 1906.

From Gladys Hansen's San Francisco Almanac
©1995 Chronicle Books

March 22, 1957
The worst earthquake since 1906 struck at 11:45 this morning, and registered 5.3 on the Richter scale. The main shock had been preceded by at least six smaller quakes throughout the morning. The quake started some fires, including a blaze caused by a spill in the chemistry lab at old Lowell High School, according to Lowell student Frederick F. Postel. Fires connected to the earthquake broke out, but that was denied by the Fire Chief, possibly for political reasons. The tremor was preceded by a magnitude 3 shock at 8:38 a.m., and a magnitude 3.75 quake at 10:48 a.m. There were no lives lost. The quake was centered in the Westlake District of Daly City where many water heaters were ripped from their moorings and much plaster was damaged.

Three-alarm fire at Mission and Duboce shortly after the earthquake in buildings scheduled to be torn down for the new Central Freeway. Fire Chief William F. Murray said the fire was not earthquake caused, but communications were jammed because of the tremor. Five firemen were injured.

Many buildings suffered damage in the earthquake. KPIX at 2655 Van Ness suffered broken windows as did the Palace Hotel. The top floor of St. Anne's School at 13th and Irving was badly damaged, but the children were safe. The McCreery Branch of the library, on Sixteenth near Market was so badly damaged that it would be razed. The Presidio, Sunset and Richmond branch libraries were also damaged. A water main broke at City Hall and flooded Mole Hall under construction at Civic Center. Masonry fell from California Hall at Turk and Polk streets, and Central Emergency Hospital at 50 Ivy St. reported at least 50 people were treated for injuries. There was much glass and plaster damage at the ParkMerced Apartments, and the road at Lake Merced collapsed. Sheridan Elementary, Longfellow, Mission High and Park Presidio Junior High were closed because of earthquake damage.

English comedianne Gracie Fields said, "We were on the 16th floor of a hotel when the earthquake it. We were picked up like a wedding cake, shaken and then dropped to the floor again. It was very exciting." Plaster fell in the corridors at the Hall of Justice on Kearny St., but there were no injuries in the building.

The Municipal Organ, largest west of Chicago, had broken pipes and a dislodged harp attachment which would cost $300 to repair, according to James T. Graham, auditorium supervisor. At Golden Gate Park, the Portals of the Past, remnants of the Nob Hill home of A.N. Towne from 1906, were damaged by the earthquake when one column fell.

March 23, 1957
Fire broke out at the Twin Peaks Hotel, 2160 Market St., shortly after the 12:14 a.m. aftershock. Two policemen were felled by smoke while rescuing 50 people from the hotel and adjoining buildings. The arson squad could find no connection between the earthquake aftershock and the fire.

Speaking from his laboratory in Pasadena, Dr. Charles Richter said, This is not a prediction; it is only another way of saying that in California we must learn to live with the constant possibility of a serious earthquake."

Admiral A.G. Cook, the city's civil defense director, said a minimum of 70,000 homes had been damaged in the Bay Area by the earthquake.

March 24, 1957
Fire at the Crown Cork and Seal Co. on Bayshore Blvd. today was caused by boxes that fell in the earthquake and knocked a thermostat out of commission. That allowed an overhead gas heater to overheat and start the fire. It did $2500 damage.

March 26, 1957
Fire Chief Murray said none of the fires that occurred around the time of the earthquake were connected with the tremor.

April 1, 1957
Coast Highway 1 was reopened at Thornton Bluffs after earthquake- caused landslides were cleared away.

April 7, 1957
Two mild aftershocks of the March 23 earthquake were felt.

April 9, 1957
An earthquake-weakened water main broke at Haight and Buchanan and flooded three blocks.

April 29, 1957
Two minor aftershocks of the March earthquake were felt at 4:11 a.m and 4:05 p.m.

April 30, 1957
Residents on Ulloa from 15th to Madrone Ave. complained that speeding streetcars were shaking their houses. Muni General Manager Charles Miler said "The earthquake loosened some joints in the houses, making them more susceptible to the vibrations set up by moving streetcars."