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Politics & Government

Dixon Then and Now: 1892 Earthquake Showed Dixon Not Immune

Brick buildings built after earlier fire were worst hit

One of the reasons I moved to Dixon was to get away from Bay Area earthquakes. I was in San Jose when the “World Series” Loma Prieta quake hit in 1989, with an epicenter between San Jose and Santa Cruz.  

But the fact is that Dixon isn’t immune from earthquakes, as history shows – it just doesn’t feel as many powerful ones.

Dixon is actually situated just to the east of the supposedly inactive Midland Fault Zone, which stretches up in the direction of Winters. To my knowledge, this fault hasn’t created a quake since settlers first arrived here in the 1800s.

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The first quake of any consequence felt since the town was established hit in 1888 on a Saturday night in May. “The Floral Fair (in the Opera House) was in progress at the time, and many people left the hall in flight,” said the . “The sharp shock of earthquake was felt … windows and doors rattled in a lively way, and swinging lamps vibrated in a threatening manner.”

Some were afraid that the Opera House had caught fire, but the fire was actually in a nearby barn filled with hay, which burned to the ground.

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The earthquake which showed that Dixon wasn’t immune from nearby big shakers took place only four years later, in 1892. This time a major one hit at 2 a.m. in the morning on April 19. The magnitude has been estimated to be around 6.5 on the Richter scale, and the epicenter was thought by at least one expert to have been in the Allendale area. That’s six miles west of Dixon, or not far from where Allendale Road crosses under the I-505 freeway.

“ … people were awakened by an ominous rumbling, followed almost immediately by a heavy shock and the twisting and groaning of timbers (in homes and buildings),” said the . “The exact duration of the shock is not known, but to the terror-stricken people waiting for the end it seemed hours. Many thought that the end of time had arrived and in the hotels and lodging houses … pandemonium reigned.

“Scarcely had the first vibration ceased before a second of shorter duration began.”

Over the next few days, strong aftershocks continued.  

Extensive damage took place in Vacaville and Winters in addition to Dixon. Dixon had no fatalities.

Fissures running north and south opened in the ground to the west of Dixon, including one seen only five miles away. Water was seen gushing out of the ground in places.  

Ironically, after Dixon’s great fire of 1883 – nine years earlier – when most of the city’s downtown structures burned because they were built from wood – businesses rebuilt using fireproof bricks. Unfortunately, unreinforced bricks come apart during major quakes, as the 1892 quake quickly demonstrated.

In downtown Dixon, a brick wall forming part of the Brinckerhoff and King building was wrecked. The brick fire walls of the Knights of Phythias and Ross buildings toppled over, and a large portion of the Knights’ back brick wall fell down.

Said the , “The Masonic building … was twisted and torn until it was almost a wreck. The south fire wall toppled over and crushed in the roof of Dugan’s store, completely wrecking the building. The north fire wall almost ruined Rochford’s butcher shop in its fall, crushing in the roof. Shannon Keaton, who was sleeping in the building, had a miraculous escape from death.

“Both the north and south walls of the Baptist Church fell and the plastering throughout the building is ruined.” At the time, it was thought that the church would be rebuilt from wood.

“The north fire-wall of Eppinger & Co’s (general) store was badly damaged and the falling plaster and shelf goods gave the big store the look of being hopelessly wrecked.” Nearby, “The roof of John Rhemke’s saloon was crushed in by the fire-wall from Eppinger & Co’s building. Mr. Rhemke (and another man) were sleeping in the building and were buried in the debris. They were dug out of the ruins (and) both were badly cut and bruised.”  

The damage to homes varied from simple falling chimneys and cracked walls to more serious damage caused by falling roofs and structures moved off their foundations.

“Ralph Udell’s house is a total wreck,” stated the Tribune. “It was parted in the middle and moved three feet off its foundation.”

Of course, there was much damage to personal items as dishes and crockery fell and broke.

Fire broke out in several locations but volunteer firemen put them out quickly.

As was the nature of the times, rebuilding began quickly without the bureaucratic red tape seen today and without emergency aid from government agencies. Townspeople learned from the experience, and many chimneys, for example, were rebuilt from metal rather than brick.

The Tribune hardly missed a beat in putting out its newspaper, though it had to move to new offices below the Opera House.

I’ll condense a ditty published in the newspaper after the aftershocks were over:

      The great earthquake,

      The timid women caught in negligee,

      … made brave men feel like a country jay,

      But maidens won’t admit the show, and blush,

      … While men about their bravery gush

      … Making gaudy liars

      Of our goodly sires.

An example of the tall tales being told was this example related in the Tribune: “A Dixon gentleman whose veracity cannot be impeached … says that the water pitcher in his room on the night of the big quake was lifted bodily from the bowl and after turning three separate and distinct summersaults was deposited right side up in another corner of the room without spilling a drop of water.”

Perhaps a more credible story was told by Father Lally of who said that large, heavy statues of St. Joseph and the Virgin Mary near the main altar were found to have rotated 180 degrees during the quake, remaining safely on their small bases.

It took almost a month for the downtown streets of Dixon to be completely cleared of debris.

Later, between the years 1900 and 1974, there were only three earthquakes centered in the Dixon area of magnitude four or higher. In 1978 there was a magnitude 4.2 quake near Madison in Yolo county.

The 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco (mostly because of the resulting fire) was felt much less strongly in Dixon. The shaking lasted about one and one-half minutes and only Dixon's Masonic Hall was damaged (though there was more damage to the west in Suisun City). Because of the kinship Dixonites felt with San Francisco, the upcoming May Fair was cancelled and residents donated money for relief. I think that some orphaned children from San Francisco were cared for in Dixon for a time.

The 1989 earthquake mentioned at the beginning of the column was also felt in Dixon, although the only reported damage was cracked walls in the Jacobs Intermediate School’s library.

It is felt that Dixon may be more susceptible to earthquakes due to a high water table, making soil liquefaction possible. A concern also would be any earthquake damage to the Monticello Dam, which forms Lake Berryessa. If all that lake water were released, it could flood Dixon in a major way.       

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