Californians are always waiting for "the big one." The knowledge that a devastating earthquake could hit at any time is just part of life in the Golden State. But the biggest recorded earthquake to hit California wasn’t in San Francisco or LA, but rather much closer to home. Today on KVPR’s Central Valley Roots – the story of the Fort Tejon Earthquake.
It was around 8:00 AM January 9th 1857 when the San Andreas Fault let loose. The resulting earthquake had an estimated magnitude of 7.9. It left a surface rupture over 200 miles long. The ground was offset 30 feet in places.
Survivors reported the Kern River flowed backwards, and the Tulare Lake splashed onto the shoreline. In Visalia, a newspaper account said the tremor made it difficult to remain standing, and the ground moved like waves on the ocean.
The shaking lasted for around 2 minutes. Overall damage was light, given California’s small population at the time, with only two deaths. The damage was most severe at Fort Tejon in Kern County, where many of the buildings were left uninhabitable.
Today, scientists think the epicenter was actually much further north, on the San Andreas Fault near the small community of Parkfield. To this day, this quake in 1857 is considered the last “big one” to hit Southern California.
