A trip down Market Street before the fire

For more information and to download this film, please visit https://www.loc.gov/item/00694408/

This film was recorded by placing a movie camera on the front of a cable car as it proceeded down San Francisco’s Market Street. As a time capsule, the film showcases the details of daily life in a major American city, including the fashions, transportations and architecture of the era. The film was originally thought to have been made in 1905, but historian David Kiehn, who examined contemporary newspapers, weather reports and car license plates recorded in the film, suggested that “A Trip Down Market Street” was likely filmed just a few days before the devastating earthquake on April 18, 1906. Named to the National Film Registry in 2010.