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  • Film, Video
    Army pack train bringing supplies
    Variant title from the New York clipper, May 19, 1906: Army of pack train bringing supplies
    The first segment shows a series of loaded mule trains, guided by mules and horses. Many soldiers ride two-to-a-horse (or mule), possibly to facilitate quick unloading of supplies. Note the "Rough Rider"-style hats worn by many of the men. The dusty location is unclear; if the tower in the right distance is St. Boniface Church, the view could be west on Golden Gate Avenue...
    • Contributor: Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Kleine (George) Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1906
  • Film, Video
    Sutro Baths, no. 1 "One of the sights of San Francisco. A 50-foot slide is used by the bathers, who toboggan down its slippery surface in all positions. The bathers are clad in black trunks, making fine contrast with the flesh tints. 50 feet"--Edison films catalog. "In the background are three tiers of spectators watching the bathers. There are many people bathing and diving into the swimming pool....
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1897
  • Film, Video
    Panoramic view of the Golden Gate
    Variant title from AFI catalog, film beginnings, 1893-1910: Panorama of the Golden Gate
    This film, photographed from the front of a moving steam engine, shows the scenic portion of the Market Street Railway (formerly the Ferries and Cliff House Railroad route) along the bluffs and cliffs of Lands End, at the northwest corner of San Francisco, overlooking the Golden Gate and the Marin headlands. The film shows the first 1.5 miles of the 5.25 mile eastbound return...
    • Contributor: Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1902
  • Film, Video
    Union Iron Works "Here was built the peerless battleship "Oregon." The scene is taken at lunch hour, and shows a great throng of employees leaving the shop. 50 feet"--Edison films catalog, no. 94, March 1900, p. 21. "Southern Pacific Company series: The Southern Pacific Company ("Sunset Route") offers special inducements to winter travelers, by reason of its southern route, thereby avoiding the extreme cold of the winter...
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1898
  • Film, Video
    Panorama of beach and Cliff House
    Panoramic view of beach and Cliff House
    This film is an afternoon panorama of weekend crowds at the north end of Ocean Beach, the western shore of San Francisco near the famed Cliff House. The film postdates the nearby Dutch Windmill (1902) and predates the burning of this Cliff House (1907). Until the 1920s much of western San Francisco was open sand dunes blown inland from Ocean Beach, the five-mile-long untamed...
    • Contributor: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Miles, Herbert J.
    • Date: 1903
  • Film, Video
    Lurline Baths "A large indoor swimming pool can be seen. The camera was directed toward a slide from which people can be seen entering the pool in rapid succession"--Early motion pictures. "At San Francisco. The main feature is the toboggan slide which the bathers use, some sitting, others lying down, head first or feet first. 50 feet"--Edison films catalog.
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1897
  • Film, Video
    Bird's-eye view of San Francisco, Cal., from a balloon As early as 1874, passenger balloon flights were being made over San Francisco. San Franciscans - and Americans in general - were fascinated with the thrills and dangers of flight. Although balloon technology had not advanced greatly by the turn of the century, attempts at man-powered flight were sustaining public interest. The era of powered flight arrived in 1903 with the Wright brothers' flight...
    • Contributor: Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1902
  • Article
    San Francisco earthquake and fire, April 18, 1906 Shows the aftermath of the San Francisco earthquake of April 18, 1906, and the devastation resulting from the subsequent three-day fire. The earthquake struck at 5:12 a.m. San Francisco, with thousands of unreinforced brick buildings, and closely-spaced wooden Victorian dwellings, was poorly prepared for a major fire. The scenes in the film are preceded by interior titles, many of which are sensationalized. One scene...
    • Date: 1906
  • Film, Video
    After launching "Taken near the Union Works, San Francisco, Cal., immediately after the launching of the Japanese Man-of-war "Chitose." The scene opens with the pleasure yacht "Unadilla" passing in the immediate foreground, her decks loaded with passengers. The boat slowly passes, until the stern is directly to the audience. The water in the wake of the yacht is churned by her screw propeller into a milky...
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1898
  • Article
    A trip down Market Street before the fire "Produced as part of the popular Hale's Tours of the World film series, the film begins at the location of the Miles Brothers film studio, 1139 Market Street, between 8th and 9th Streets; it was filmed 14 April 1906, four days before the devastating earthquake and fire of 18 April 1906, which virtually destroyed the entire downtown area. The negative was taken by train...
    • Contributor: Miles Brothers
    • Date: 1906
  • Film, Video
    Feeding sea gulls "A fine view of San Francisco Bay, from an Oakland ferryboat. Tug towing a scow passes by. Sea gulls sail through the air and dive into the seething wake of the boat. 40 feet"--Edison films catalog, no. 94. "Southern Pacific Company series: The Southern Pacific Company ("Sunset Route") offers special inducements to winter travelers, by reason of its southern route, thereby avoiding the extreme...
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1898
  • Film, Video
    TR at Sagamore Hill [1916]
    Roosevelt Memorial Association title: TR at Sagamore Hill, 1917-1918 | Theodore Roosevelt at Sagamore Hill, 1916
    On May 27, 1916, shortly before the Republican Party and Progressive Party conventions, the newly formed Roosevelt Non-Partisan League sponsors a demonstration of support for TR at Sagamore Hill. Many prominent men are included in the over 2,000 people who traveled from New York City to Oyster Bay to see TR and hear him speak on "Americanism." Panning shots of crowd gathered around porch;...
    • Contributor: Hurd, Richard M. (Richard Melancthon) - Roosevelt, Theodore - Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1915
  • Film, Video
    San Francisco's future By mid-1916, after viewing the carnage in Europe, the United States saw itself poised with great reluctance on the edge of participation in World War I. Isolationism and anti-preparedness feeling remained strong in San Francisco, not only among radicals such as the International Workers of the Worlds ("the Wobblies"), but also among responsible labor leaders. At the same time, with the rise of Bolshevism...
    • Contributor: Rodiester, Claire - Hearst, Phoebe Apperson - Afi/Post (George) Collection (Library of Congress) - Rolph, James
    • Date: 1916
  • Film, Video
    Return of lifeboat
    Title in Edison films catalog: Return of the life boat | Return of life boat
    "Shows a life boat coming through the breakers. The surf is high and the stout boat is tossed about like a cork. 50 feet"--Edison films catalog. "Pacific Coast Life Saving Service series: These subjects are illustrative of the work performed by the Life Saving Corps of the United States Government, and show the methods in vogue at one of the most important stations on...
    • Contributor: White, James H. (James Henry) - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - United States. Life-Saving Service - Blechynden, Frederick - Fort Point Life-Saving Station (U.S.) - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - United States. Revenue-Cutter Service
    • Date: 1897
  • Film, Video
    Troop ships for the Philippines
    Troopships for the Philippines
    Shows the departure from San Francisco of two troop ships, the S.S. Australia and the S.S. City of Sydney, bound for Manila during the Spanish-American War. The first ship shown is the Australia with many troops on deck, some waving. The ship's name is visible on the hull at the end of the sequence. The second ship, the City of Sydney, is shown being...
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1898
  • Film, Video
    Troops embarking at San Francisco Shows troops of the First Regiment, California Volunteers, boarding the Pacific Mail steamer City of Peking to serve in the Philippine theater of the Spanish-American War. The film was shot at the Pacific Mail Steamship Company dock between 10:50am and 1:50pm on Friday, May 13, 1898. The dock was located at First Street between Brannan and Townsend streets. The camera is probably facing north.....
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1898
  • Film, Video
    Procession of floats "Taken at San Francisco, Cal., at the Golden Jubilee. In the foreground are seen crowds of people, all being very close to the camera. The first float is drawn by four white horses and is at least twenty feet long. It carries a full load of little school girls, who sit along its full length facing the sides of the street. This is followed...
    • Contributor: Blechynden, Frederick - Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - White, James H. (James Henry)
    • Date: 1898
  • Film, Video
    President reviewing school children
    Biograph production log title: President Roosevelt reviewing school children
    From the side of a broad avenue, a crowd of people await the arrival of President Theodore Roosevelt. The marching military that precedes his carriage can be seen at a distance of a quarter of a mile away. Four other camera positions along the march include the escort, the dignitaries, and at the conclusion, Roosevelt in his carriage.
    • Contributor: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Miles, Herbert J.
    • Date: 1903
  • Film, Video
    Over route of Roosevelt parade in an automobile This film is a review by automobile of the arrival parade route of President Theodore Roosevelt, on Tuesday, May 12, 1903. The film was shot from about 2:10 pm to 2:15 pm (shortly before the 3 pm parade) and shows street and building decorations and excited crowds. The portion of the route shown is in the heart of the downtown business district. The later...
    • Contributor: Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Miles, Herbert J.
    • Date: 1903
  • Film, Video
    The San Francisco disaster
    Formerly titled: Unidentified Staples & Charles. No. 1, San Francisco after the earthquake and fire of 1906 | Title in Lubin catalog 1907: San Francisco earthquake
    This film is made up of five panoramas, four wide and one close-up, of the ruins of downtown San Francisco shortly after the 1906 disaster, including a panorama and scene in a refugee camp. Note that the locations provided in the interior titles are incorrect for segments 1, 3, and 4. "Panorama of City Hall from Top of U.S. Mint." This right-to-left (north-to-northwest) panorama...
    • Contributor: Frawley, Jack - S. Lubin (Firm : Philadelphia, Pa.)
    • Date: 1906
  • Film, Video
    Arrest in Chinatown, San Francisco, Cal This film shows the arrest and conveyance of a Chinese man in Chinatown, watched by a crowd of onlookers. The precise date of this film and the arrest charge are uncertain. It is possible that the arrest was connected with the smuggling of illegal immigrants from China. By mutual agreement between China and the United States, a small quota of merchants and students was...
    • Contributor: Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1897
  • Film, Video
    TR in San Francisco, 1903
    Theodore Roosevelt in San Francisco, 1903 | President Roosevelt in San Francisco, 1903
    The following is a scene-by-scene description of the film: The camera was positioned on the southeast corner of O'Farrell Street and Van Ness Avenue, and pans from north to west to south, and then back to west. [Frame: 0100] The view is north on Van Ness Avenue toward the approaching band and cavalry. Students of Whittier School are in the foreground. [0604] The band...
    • Contributor: Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1903
  • Film, Video
    Scene in Chinatown This film was shot in an alley of San Francisco's Chinatown on Saturday, September 15, 1900, at midday. The topography of the site (sloping down to the far street), the width of the alley, the location of utility poles [Frame: 0255], and the location of buildings across the far street suggest that the view is north from Washington Street down Washington Place (today's Wentworth...
    • Contributor: Niver (Kemp) Collection (Library of Congress) - Ackerman, Raymond - American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1900
  • Film, Video
    The President's carriage
    Variant title from Internet movie database: Pres. Roosevelt's carriage & escort | Title from the Biograph picture catalog: President Roosevelt's carriage
    This film shows President Roosevelt in San Francisco, passing in the arrival parade on Market Street on Tuesday, May 12, 1903. The camera view is from the north side of Market Street, just east of Grant Avenue. After leaving the Southern Pacific train station at Third and Townsend streets, the parade proceeded up Third Street and wound through downtown San Francisco before continuing up...
    • Contributor: American Mutoscope and Biograph Company - Paper Print Collection (Library of Congress) - Miles, Herbert J.
    • Date: 1903
  • Film, Video
    San Francisco Chinese funeral Shows most of the ceremonial portion of the funeral procession of Tom Kim Yung, military attache to the Chinese Legation to the United States. The camera looks slightly north of east across Dupont Street, the main street of Chinatown. All business in Chinatown was suspended for the day. Note the traditional ponytails, or queues, worn by Chinese men, a universal custom during the Quing...
    • Contributor: Thomas A. Edison, Inc - Kleine (George) Collection (Library of Congress)
    • Date: 1904