Third Street (Mark Twain’s earthquake) →
The entire front of a tall four-story brick building in Third street sprung outward like a door and fell sprawling across the street, raising a dust like a great volume of smoke!
Why it's here: Weird & curious: Twain was a newspaper reporter in San Francisco in the 1860s. He tells this earthquake as comedy, and devotes the rest of the chapter to its “curiosities”, which he says “made toothsome gossip for nine days.” He doesn’t say which corner he was at, so this pin is approximate.
Here Before Us