Public Domain
San Francisco: Aftermath of Earthquake
1906 · Keystone View Company / American Mutoscope and Biograph Company · Dir. Robert K. Bonine
Footage shot not long after the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco is edited together so that more than one scene and more than one vantage are included. We see fire raging. We see burned-out buildings, piles of rubble, and buildings with only one wall standing. People stand and watch; others walk purposely through the debris. A carriage passes; the camera pans the desolation. A horse-drawn cart is laden with a family's remaining possessions. A sign hangs outside one building: "A little disfigured but still in business. Men Wanted."
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
This film, which captures the ruins of San Francisco following the 1906 earthquake and fire, was produced and released in 1906. Under the current United States copyright law, all works published or registered before January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain regardless of whether they were originally copyrighted or if those copyrights were renewed.
The Library of Congress and Internet Archive host several films from this specific period and location (including works by the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company and the Edison Manufacturing Company). Because the production date is indisputably 1906, the maximum possible 95-year term for corporate authorship has expired. The film is now free to use and distribute without copyright restriction.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- https://www.loc.gov/collections/san-francisco-earthquake-and-fire-1897-to-1916/about-this-collection/
- https://archive.org/details/san-francisco-earthquake-shafter-aftermath
- Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (1894-1939)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.