I’ve been reading a pamphlet from the US Geological Survey (USGS) called Facing the Great Disaster: How the Men and Women of the U.S. Geological Survey Responded to the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake . The 18-page booklet pays tribute to the men and women of the USGS, who went beyond the call of their profession to chronicle the disaster from day to day, and to assist in post-quake relief efforts. To quote: "They were all ordinary people who responded to a natural disaster in extraordinary ways."

The USGS' California-based topographers, many of whom were originally hired to map the physical features of the state, shifted their focus and studied the effects of the quake through photography and field observations. Some of the more memorable photos on the quake that are in circulation today are part of the USGS collection. Many of them are reproduced in the pamphlet.

The prose of the booklet is unsentimental and devoid of drama. Instead, it highlights true accomplishments of the USGS' finest without the need for heroic language. You can read the booklet online  or purchase a hard copy  from the USGS.