On Thanksgiving Day 1900, a catastrophic disaster struck during the annual Big Game between Stanford and Cal in San Francisco. With over 19,000 fans packed into Recreation Park, thousands more sought alternative views. Hundreds climbed onto the rooftop of the nearby San Francisco and Pacific Glass Works factory, unaware they were stepping onto a death trap.
The factory’s furnaces had been burning at 3,000 degrees, and the thin iron ventilator roof was never meant to hold weight. As the game unfolded, the roof suddenly collapsed, sending dozens of spectators plummeting 45 feet—some onto the hard brick floor, others directly into the inferno. The horrifying scene played out while the football game continued uninterrupted, and early newspaper accounts failed to mention the tragedy.
Despite investigations, no one was held responsible. The official death toll reached 23, many of them children, making it the deadliest sporting disaster in American history. Yet today, the event remains almost entirely forgotten, even by Stanford, Cal, and the city of San Francisco.
This video explores one of college football’s darkest moments, using real newspaper accounts to tell the chilling story of neglect, corruption, and lost lives. Watch to learn how a rivalry game turned into a nightmare, and why history has largely erased this tragedy from memory.
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