Trip Down Market Street 1906 (Restored Full Version)

[MilitantGraham]

This may sound a stupid question, but here in the UK, trams are powered by overhead electric wires, and electric trains by a high voltage third rail.

These American trams appear to be powered by a central third rail, so why are people not getting shocks when they step on it ?

[mcul2112]

@MilitantGraham They're pulled by underground cable.  Those are Cable Cars. :)

[DannyBruiz]

Not a lot of women. Where are they?

Either shopping or in the kitchen? Yeh think?

[RGC198]

This video was actually made in 1905 (not 1906). If you compare with similar scenes taken just after the earthquake, you will notice that the Market Street cable trams have all been converted to electric, This could not have been done in just a few days.

[JEarlofessex]

Anyone else notice that scene from 5:10 to 5:14 where the car was't even considering slowing down for that crossing hourse carriage? How odd. I mean at the very moment of the crossing you can see the car probably less than a foot to the side end of the carriage.

[EclecticSF]

Awesome footage, didn't seem to matter then if you wanted to make a left off of Market Street!

[xxwesdogxx]

Notice how everyone back then had swagger in that they couldn't care less about what people thought of them.

[MrLakeChocolate]

Nostalgic...always a treat to see the city I call home.

[babygirl77sx]

more people on the street than these day....

[TheColorPaul]

Look at those license plates! Only 4 numbers!

[dhksrksalem]

3:29 watch out!

[Rick88888888]

Please have look at the quality of my restored version in HD of this historic film at: .....watch?v=A3IvrhF9RMQ With the use of modern video enhancing techniques a much better result has been achieved.

[danistimberland]

where is all the homeless?

[blakfloyd]

@danistimberland

They weren't invented until the Great Depression.

[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 only 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.

[XXXDEVILBOY]

the man who waved in 2:30 or 2:40 will be rememberd as the man who waved in this video For ever and he doesnt know it

how sad :/

[TheCaleyman]

Would have been better with music. Fantastic film though.

[DirkBeveridge]

@TheCaleyman Air - La Femme D'Argent

[TheCaleyman]

@DirkBeveridge Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Thought it was gone for good.

[DirkBeveridge]

@TheCaleyman Air - La Femme D'Argent

[TheCaleyman]

@DirkBeveridge I played that version thanks. If only someone would put La Femme D'Argent on THIS HQ version !

[DirkBeveridge]

@TheCaleyman Trip Down Market Street 1906 (Restored Full Version)

[footage]

There's a broadcast-quality copy here, fully downloadable and editable.

-- Rick Prelinger

archive.org/details/TripDownMa­rketStreetrBeforeTheFire

[SFFilmMuseum]

@footage Wow, amazing quality! Nice work, Rick! ;)

[Raymantico]

it takes forever, people act weirdly, cars don't stop for pedestrians, street car doesn't stop for passengers, there's substantial horse-shit... the more things change the more they stay the same

[reddiaperbaby]

No traffic laws...it's a free-for-all ! Probably lots of accidents in those days. Note early steam powered car at 8:08

[SFFilmMuseum]

@reddiaperbaby A free-for-all indeed! We love that shot of the steam powered car too.

[TheCaleyman]

@reddiaperbaby I would have thought that steam powered cars would have been on the way out by 1906. Surely by that time the internal combustion engine had taken over?

[rg0057]

While the quality of the picture is good, this is missing the opening title, and the ending which includes going right up to the building and then turning around. The Library of Congress has a version that includes that (on YouTube), but poor picture quality. I'm certain there is at least one other version with better quality and the complete film, but I haven't found it here.

[bagginsatwelldotcom]

@rg0057 I'm certain there is at least one other version with better quality and the complete film, but I haven't found it here.

TRY THIS :

/watch?v=oubsaFBUcTc

[roxypen]

@ 3:27 this guy almost got ranned over and he like jumped back.

[scriller1262]

Just watched a special on 60 Min televison show in which a researcher discovered that this was filmed days before the earthquake that destroyed the city. It turned out that the producers of it (forgot their name) mailed the film to a company in NY the day before the destruction occured. A great historic tour. I wonder how many other such films of times before the great depression exist.

[SFFilmMuseum]

@scriller1262 Yes, David Kiehn (from Niles Film Museum) did some amazing investigative work on this to date the film days before the quake.

[kafcan]

Why were American cars all right hand drive then? When did number plates come in? It looks dangerous until you realise that all the vehicles are only moving at walking pace. Compare this film to 'London Street Scene 1903'. London already had traffic congestion due to ancient narrow streets and a profusion of large horse buses.

[SFFilmMuseum]

@kafcan The London film is very intense indeed.

[TheNorthwestReport]

@kafcan It's called controlled chaos! If all traffic laws were removed, then people would NATURALLY slow down to walking speed within cities unless they wanted to run someone over!

[Aphidboy]

Jolly good! Working men and businessmen and boys on bikes; dray horses and cars with steeringwheels on the English side; confusion, automobiles boing every which way, and very athletic-looking pedestrians. This is wonderful!