Images: Historic Photos Illustrate the Destruction Left Behind by the March 1933 Long Beach Earthquake
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The March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake was a disaster that changed the way Southern Californians looked at earthquakes, leading to school construction standards and more awareness of the threat faced in what would become known as "earthquake country."
17 photos
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
These images show damaged left by the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
A car is parked next to a damaged building after the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
Rubble can be seen through the window frame a store destroyed in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
A damaged car is towed away after the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
Damaged water tanks on Western Avenue appear in this photo after the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
A view of a Florence Avenue store building that crumbled in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
A view of damaged buildings on a Compton street following the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
This photo shows a house that shifted dramatically in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
Shaking from the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake was felt across the region, including in Compton, where these buildings crumbled.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
Rubble is seen on the ground under a Western Auto Supply Co. billboard following the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
An automotive garage that was destroyed in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
The corner of a brick building crumbled to the ground in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
A man sits next to a collapsed building after the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
People walk past a building damaged in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
An example of one of the many brick buildings that collapsed in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Griffin Family, U.S. Geological Survey
Second-floor rooms can be seen after a brick building collapsed in the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
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Capt. T.J. Maher, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey
Cracks can be seen in this partially collapsed building after the March 10, 1933 Long Beach earthquake. The quake caused about $50 million in property damage.
