Fort Tejon earthquake, 1857

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San Andreas Fault , the earthquake struck along this transform fault

The Fort Tejon Earthquake (Engl. Fort Tejon earthquake ), which occurred on January 9, 1857 is considered the strongest earthquake that the US state of California shook. It is estimated at a magnitude of 7.9. In terms of its strength, it is therefore comparable to the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 . It occurred along the San Andreas Fault for 362 kilometers between Parkfield and San Bernardino . The two plates that meet along this fault shifted up to nine meters during this quake.

California was still very sparsely populated in 1857. Unlike the New Madrid earthquake of 1811, there are hardly any records of people who experienced this earthquake. For this reason it is only known among seismologists . According to current research, its epicenter was near the Californian city of Parkfield. It got its name, however, because the army camp Fort Tejon , which was on the Tejon Pass , reported this.

Only one death was known as a result of the earthquake. The person died in the collapse of an adobe house on Reed's Ranch in Gorman , very close to the fault . Most of the buildings at Fort Tejon were badly damaged and several people were injured. Several buildings in Los Angeles were destroyed, but no major damage was reported. In Ventura , the roof of the mission fell and the bell tower collapsed. By soil liquefaction caused cracks in the swampy ground in Los Angeles and near Oxnard .

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