A Trip Down Market Street

[GargusSCP]

It's quite amazing how back then, this was the sort of thing only an expert could do, and then only with hours and hours of preparation.

Today you can get the same effect with a phone or handheld camera.

How the times have changed...

[mcul2112]

the one that's to Air's La Femme d'Argent is better. don't know where it went. it had a ton of views...

[Mollgreen]

@mcul2112

SWANNSPIT has a version set to La Femme d'Argent. I think it's the best soundtrack to this film of all the versions on youtube: the music by Air lends such poignancy to the film.

[mcul2112]

@Mollgreen thanks. yeah that song has a kind of timelessness that just....it's just perfect. one of my favorite videos of all time...genius.

[MrJonolson]

Please don't ever remove this video. There are too many memories. dp3atlanta.....haven't heard about you for some time.

Jon

[cornsnakedk]

wtf? am i just really high or is that trolley not on tracks? 2:00

[bizzibile]

oh remember this one a lot

[SwuaveWEB]

You know whats sad about this video? Is that every person in this video is dead. And life goes on.

[kirbygene]

Play this with the volume down while listening to "Road To Nowhere" by the Talking heads. It's like the two were made for each other. Look at how few overweight people there were in 1905-06. Leaner, hardier people.

[SmartGXL]

I wonder if the women in this film had "crazy 70's bush"?

[DFWmetro]

This was not the normal Market Street traffic for that time in 1906; it was perhaps a promotional film. In this film most people were recruited to make San Francisco look livelier. Notice that the same motor cars make many U-turns to reappear in the film and every person is wearing a hat to look dressy with the exception of two. Can you find them? It is also eerie to see that most people in the film died just four days later in the earthquake and fire.

[1971mgb]

@DFWmetro

About 1500 people died in the quake and the fire. That was only a small portion of S.F. population at the time. Women wore dresses and a man would not be caught dead not wearing a hat in public. It was the fashion of the time.

You can see the whole restored 12 minute film at .cbsnews

it was not a promotional film it was just life at the time.

Why with a population of nearly a half million in 1906 would they need to make it look livelier?

And yes we actually landed men on the moon.

[mcul2112]

@1971mgb heard it was a promo film...the tweaked aspect being they hired cars to be in it to make SF seem more modern. apparently some of the cars are the same ones over and over. *shrug*

[1971mgb]

@mcul2112

Could be. However other pictures I have seen around that period of time in S.F. look quite crowded and lots of cars. Beautiful film either way.

[mcul2112]

@1971mgb absolutely. and the marketing thing was just something i read. makes no difference. i still wanna' step off the streetcar and go grab a drink...

[1971mgb]

@mcul2112

You would enjoy the book

"I don't care if I never get back" Darryl Brock

Must read if you want to step off in time.

[mcul2112]

@1971mgb hey thanks! that sounds sweet! yeah, one of my favorite flicks was something "In Time' with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymore.

[1971mgb]

@mcul2112

Somewhere in time

Never get back great baseball time travel novel along those lines.

You will enjoy

[mcul2112]

@1971mgb thanks bro. do appreciate....

[Anavengertg]

The date of the video is actually April 1906

[dragonshoot32]

the one guy who was running like a monkey in front of that camera was my grandpa! ohh thats where i got my cheap mischivious genes from!

[43cdc]

No street lights it just keeps going and people just runnig across it like nothing no wonder there were many streetcar accidents in those days.

[SCHOOL2002]

guys Gad is great who created us and created them from His soul.He is one no one exist before Him he created us from nothing and we well die and we well become back in the day after he has no mama or father or son he is just One.and believe me after one hundred years people well make fun of us whine they see how we used to live and how we acted Gad is Great Gad is Great

[fronombulax]

what's the song?

[CrazyChickenDK]

@fronombulax Accompanying this footage is music from the live recording of "Ennio After Dark", recorded at Eyedrum in Atlanta, Georgia by the Atlanta band "dp3".

[nebutron]

No traffic lights, no lanes, no crosswalks...a different world!

[posavea]

this is the longest mind-wandering 8 minutes of my life. Amazing! I wish I was "up in the clouds" right now. Thank you.

[puncak06]

When a Man still a gentlemen

[lonesn1per]

i love this video! i walked down these streets everyday and its funny to see it from a view thats 100 years old...

[posavea]

I don't smoke pot but if I did, I would get high and watch this video. I'll keep this in mind...

[Quy4life]

bet everyone shown in this video are already dead or dying.

[HuntmanC68]

look at all those people, just living their lives having no idea where we would be today, watching them from the internet and commenting on their lives, and everybody in this movie is probably dead now, just like we're gonna be

[FuckinMetalBitchs]

apparently this video was actually taken in 1906, possibly mere weeks before The Big One

[MsCrazyDog101]

@FuckinMetalBitchs yea i know, i read about it. the congress said it was taken in 1905 but this historian dude found out it was taken just 1 week before the 1906 earthquake

[tubebellator]

what's with the gay music

[guitarguy098]

What is the song?

[nosleeplisa]

Wow, what a lovely vid--thanks for sharing it!

However, we locals would call this a trip "UP" market street.

Down is heading south :)

[laugh2livealot]

Everyone goes every which way. I wonder how many people get run over per day. No traffic lights no right of way, people walking in the middle of the street. There were no women. I might have 1 or 2 but not sure. Im glad I wasn't born during this era.

[Beentakenaway123]

this was on 60 minutes.. people say it wasn't shot in 1905 but in 1906 just a week before the earthquake...

[oaktownstunna]

THEY DIDNT SHOW OAKLAND LOL THATS BECAUSE WHERE COOL LOL

[davidscordero]

What's the name of the song to this video?

[jalofnotrade]

this is incredible to me, so much action, and its minimalistic, like it could be a music video shot yesterday

[speculawyer]

Not just fire . . . Earthquake and then fire. (Earthquake caused the fire by knocking over lamps/candles/etc.)

[qvnsq101]

they should do a modern version and see the defference

[daianamacedo]

What is this music? It's eerie and depressing and yet I couldn't stop watching this...

[kimzeynkink]

@daianamacedo "Ennio After Dark", recorded at Eyedrum in Atlanta, Georgia by the Atlanta band "dp3". it was posted in the video description. Just click on the word "more" to read complete descriptions.

[JenniViZ]

Even though I obviously was not in this time... It looks so... Simple. No technology, nasty chemicals that causes nasty problems *cough* cancer, no bad food... Just simple...

[kimzeynkink]

@JenniViZ nice romantic and inaccurate vision, they had all sorts of problems! Horrible smoke from coal and wood burning, garbage smells, horse smells,inadequate sanitation, um, no food growing there, had to be brought in and wasn't nice like at our farmers markets... then there was typhoid and all sorts of problems.

[JenniViZ]

@kimzeynkink Hah, yeah, I figured that... So I guess it's not that nice... LOL

[kimzeynkink]

@JenniViZ but the fantasy of nostalgia and this lovely film is something to sigh over.

[pigeonmaster1]

filmed in April of 1906*

[murcielago06gt]

Did anyone else notice the car that kept circling around the camera?

[nebutron]

@murcielago06gt Yeah, I think there were some folks who noticed the camera on the streetcar and decided they'd get on there a couple of times!

[SMGleader]

holy shit, i just realized...everyone in this video, is dead, gives me goose bumps

[tramsay1027]

@SMGleader Most of the people in this died just four days after this was shot.

[YesYesYouAreRight]

@tramsay1027 Who was shot?

[tramsay1027]

@YesYesYouAreRight This was filmed just before a fire that killed many people in San Fran.

[YesYesYouAreRight]

@SMGleader

Not everyone !

[JenniViZ]

@SMGleader That is so true... :/

[GypsyFairy85]

A glimpse into a lost world.

[thejailbirdz]

nothing "illegal" back then compared to today. no fat people either!?!

[Donalorudhain]

Fantastic piece of film and very nicely set to music. Quite a reminder of our own mortality...

[zroyce]

Great song, perfect for this haunting bit of film. Know what you mean, hintofblue.

[hintofblue]

This video is so special, searching for my roots on this street

[itisaduck]

@hintofblue

My family moved there in 1865-6 but moved to San Diego in 1867. But Grandpa was in San Fran for the quake.

[MattHatter]

Hey at 4:01, it's the first audition for "Jack-Ass!"

[MandyxxMassacre]

2:33 on the right....Is that Laurel & Hardy?

LOL.

Just kidding. :)

[runerman16]

does someone have a video of the same street today going the same way?

also another good song with this is "thirty fifth street blues" by jelly roll morton

[GoodTimeGeorge3]

@runerman16

I expect you've already seen it but just in case you haven't, the same footage has Femme d'Argent as incidental music on Youtube as well - which makes the footage extremely surreal...just type 'Air Femme d'Argent' to find it!

[kimzeynkink]

@GoodTimeGeorge3 That video you mention is better, less compression by youtube. I do prefer this music though.

[caban70]

OMG, I thought the same thing.

[caban70]

The music makes it look ghostly. lol

[mercheunleashed]

those Victorians were some crazy drivers haha..i think i saw atleast 5 different possible accidents haha ..this video is truly amazing!

[zep2226]

This is incredible film footage. It's like stepping back in time. The music really adds to the haunting images. This piece of music is beautiful. I've googled the band and listened to other songs by them and they are fantastic!!!

[spiritbearNY]

A real trip back in time! Next best thing to a time machine. Thank you!

[NetworkLive]

4:34 a bit dangerous

[rob91368]

Anyone interested in finding some land space and build a town in the 1800's or early 1900's complete with trolley. It would be a communal effort and its worth it. I think money may be the object but with the right investors it would work.

[rob91368]

Life was better and easier then. The clothes were neat. People were more friendlier and kinder than today. People are more arrogant and stuckup. Cellphones,headphones keep people from meeting others.

[babywu48]

also people are on line all the time ,in chat rooms,face book etc,the world is for sure a much colder place , it is really kind of sad now,

[rob91368]

Right. But I am going to sound hateful but the destruction of the homes in California by fires is a sign that civilization cannot last forever due to greed. Greed will die eventually and so will money. Obama cannot save the world although he may help this country a bit he can't save it from destruction.

[kimzeynkink]

@rob91368 the clothes were neat, but if you were a dirty immigrant, one of the great unwashed you were not treated very well. They had loads of class and race issues back then, but then did dress well.Gadgets do bring out the douchebag in people.

[purebeastofeverythin]

lol these n00bs didn't even have the internet back then

[lolwtfomfglol]

most interesting...obviously fake...HORSELESS CARRIAGES!? HUMBUG!

[lolwtfomfglol]

next someone will say that heavier than air flight is possible HOGWASH I SAY

[kimmarie801]

the bicycle hasn't changed a bit

[tankbukkake]

is that kid in 4:21 carrying a laptop?

[blaarp]

Yeah, it looks kind of large because it's one of those old-fashioned steam-powered laptops.

[tankbukkake]

ahhhh,yes. lol

[TRUTHTRUT]

fascinating - the Fery Building is still there!

[gaae2000]

nice...if reincarnation exists, i wanna come back after 1907, buy houses on Pacific Heights, and one building righ on Market St.

[kimmarie801]

yes, this film is real and the music is good for it. Children, you need to educate yourselves with things of the past.

[ronnieknotts]

actionr

Buy a sense of humour!

Actually, I really love this film...it's a thing of beauty.

[ronnieknotts]

this is a fake or something...everything is either black, grey or white, whoever did it should have put it all with colour and that horse at 6.55 doesn't look real

[actionr]

lol. retard post of the day

[YogaNate79]

The music is all wrong for this video. The music does not represent the time period and era in which this video was made.

[kimzeynkink]

@YogaNate79 correct that the music doesn't fit the era. Hit the mute and enjoy it like the people of the day or hire someone to play the mighty Wurlitzer for you. I disagree that it is all wrong for the video. The music has good movement and pace. It is haunting and I love it.

[VideoJunkei]

Ya know, that picture rolling could be digitally edited out so easy now...but I think it adds to the haunting quality here, gives me chills.

[fleiderhosen]

You're right, the rolling does add to the haunting quality of the piece. I don't see too many women. Maybe they're in the carriages or at home boiling the wash!

[VideoJunkei]

is that clock tower still there? It was quite the landmark...

[trewqwert]

Yes.

[dcboy555]

the clock tower is the Ferry building with operating ferries and it's still there with all kinds of shops and markets and places to eat. probably the only thing i'll visit downtown cuz i hate being surrounded by tourists. but there is some good stuff in the Ferry Building.

[mooneepondskid]

I think you have a romanticised view of the small town. Being isolated tended to make them parochial,ignorant and fearful of "outsiders". It is industry in general and not cars per se that has "consolidated" modern life. As for community,well your using the internet and conversing with people on the other side of the world that you would have otherwise not met.

[3rdmadfatter]

@mooneepondskid ownd.

[outworldarts]

@mooneepondskid Speaking from experience, I agree.

[northumberlandgirl]

i think the auto is the worst invention. they brot about school consolodation,broke up the small town;now we has to leave town just to get milk,we bus our kids to school on a 20 min ride,commute 30 min. to church,drive 45 min. to work;cars smog up the air;clutter up the street;cost alot to keep.There was such a better sense of community when everyone in town went to the same store,church,school..no ammount of technology could ever impress me as much as the rewards of the small community.

[sony2hd]

I agree.

[fleiderhosen]

here, here!

[TexasRounder]

Imagine if we were never seduced by the automobile how beautiful our cities would be had they been developed around mass transit instead.

[Torjamilu]

wat's the name of the song?

[coulie27]

Amazing how disorganized the traffic is. And how many people have fun showing off for the camera. Would be fascinating to live in this time. Music is perfect!

[RobHai]

Loved the music, it went well with the footage.

[reluctantpopstar]

My fave part is that huge trolley car (it's not a cable car, you can see the trolley pole on the roof) with the giant legend "SIGHTSEEING CAR" on it. Imagine that. Trolley cars for sightseeing jaunts only. That's cool. We need those to come back.

[an80sGuy]

"Trolley cars for sightseeing jaunts only. That's cool. We need those to come back."

Your in luck. They are back. It's called the F-Line:)

[tankbukkake]

101 years latter,here we are wathing with somthing call a computer. 101 years from now (2107) somebody will be watching us with something called a morestropinquerope, and laughing at our poor technology. So i would like to say, FUCK YOU people of the future

[dragoons9009]

seriously, what exactly is wrong with u? Are you okay?

[coulie27]

Ah good! They'll probably be reading with fascination our comments on internet videos too.

[ueberRegenbogen]

It's refreshing to see old 18fps movies run at the right speed. (We see them run at 24 so often that people expect it.)

Nice tunage! I want it! I assume that it alludes to Ennio Morricone's spaghetti-western soundtracks.

[Gondring]

@ueberRegenbogen -- This doesn't seem to be the right speed either...or else gravity has changed since then. Watch the children running...they float in slow-motion.

[herecomestomy]

flyax is right.i love the 2000s.its the shit.

[BillKillerz]

That a wonderful video ! There's Ford-T everywhere !

[trewqwert]

great video. i think i'd rather live back then.

[murcielago06gt]

Hey dimwit, I think you were watching this and Back To The Future II at the same time. Back then was shit. They had no technology, shitty cars, dirt roads, shitty houses and buildings, and above all there was no technology!! Why the hell would you wanna give up everything for that shit? If you would like to live back then, it is very similar in the hick towns in central US. I bet you have a cell phone and a TV, right? GONE!! And what about that car you might have? GONE!!

[ueberRegenbogen]

| shitty cars, dirt roads, shitty houses and buildings, and above all there was no technology!!

hmmm. Cars are technology (and those "shitty" ones—some of which are still around—were orders of magnitude more durable and intrepid than most of today's offing). Roads are technology. Those street car rails are a technology that is still in use. Yes, i like my computers, and hi-fi audio. And driving fast is fun. But there's something to be said for a slower life. :)

[trewqwert]

Way to sock it to me. I don't have a car or TV but I'm thinking about getting a cell phone.

[murcielago06gt]

Wow, no TV? No money or not interested in one?

[trewqwert]

there's nothing good on

[ManilaSyndicate]

"Way to sock it to me. I don't have a car or TV but I'm thinking about getting a cell phone."

Good for you. Only the essential things really matter.

[dragoons9009]

It's your choice.

[flyax]

yeah, average life expectancy for a white male like you was 45 years, people had crap housing and sanitation, the work week was six ten-hour days...but Christian Family Values were everywhere--no fags out of the closet, and the homeless were killed in the night.

I submit that your mind is the actual shithole, pal. Alabama is waiting for you with open arms. I think you'd be more at peace there.

[hippie4ever]

Thank you. I am glad someone said something to that clown.

[flyax]

Manila, my comment above was directed at some idiot whose own comment was removed by YouTube apparently. It was a reaction to his redneck sentiments--now it looks like a non sequitor.

I also hope that healthcare and housing are the priorities by then, not patriotism and mass delusion. Let's start in '08.

[ManilaSyndicate]

flyax: Thanks for the clarification.

[ChannelingOne]

I live in SF too. I love that this footage has NO TRAFFIC lights for the trolley. Brilliant!

[NutCheese]

I guess people have always jaywalked on Market... the crosswalks haven't made much of a difference

[Yowzoe]

my extended comment: http://slancha.blogspot.com/20­06/04/1905-video-san-fran-stre­etcar-ride.html

[Yowzoe]

The above link has a mistake -- a space between the two zeros. Take the space out after you copy it to reach the blog post.

I've shown this video to many people, old and young, who grew up in S.F. and who know it well. It never fails to elicit happiness.

[SaintCancer]

I love this footage. I've been to that beautiful city that I have visited a dozen times and always discover something new.

I love when the guys in suits and bowlers on bicycles show up in the scenery, those are my favorite parts. The kids hitching a ride on the back of that car ranks up there too.

My only hope is that, those of you who are lucky enough to live there. Appreciate what you have. A truly magical city.

I want to live there, sadly I cannot afford it.

[flyax]

Wonderful stuff, thanks. Having also grown up in S.F., I took the MUNI streetcars down Market hundreds of times, and this long stretch of footage is a strange window to a century ago. Seeing this ride to the Ferry Bldg. here with a great soundtrack gives me the chills also. I added some more info and media on on my site.

[SFMatMan]

This is WONDERFUL. I live in SF, and this just gives me chills. I've posted the video to my blog to accompany my own thoughts about the 1906 quake, and how we're currently living on borrowed time. http://intotheparallax.blogspo­t.com

[mewiz]

Listen. I can't even explain how much this video works.  It is so nostalgic....almost hypnotic. Great work, man. Damn....this is really slick on so many levels.

[burritovision]

this is an excellent look at urban life at the turn of the century. this is 1905. cars were only a few years old.

[ueberRegenbogen]

Actually, automobiles were a few *decades* old—and that's just counting gasoline powered (since 1886).

[Yowzoe]

Yes but autos were still very uncommon:

"a careful tracking of automobile traffic shows that almost all of the autos

seen circle around the camera/cable car many times (one ten times). This traffic

was apparently staged by the producer to give Market Street the appearance of a

prosperous modern boulevard with many automobiles. In fact, in 1905 the automobile

was still something of a novelty in S.F. ..."

See: watch?v=GGZPYuqSBt4 -- a much less watchable print, but had this info.