At 5:12 am on the morning of April 18th 1906, an initial shock awakened the residents of San Francisco.  Some 20 to 25 seconds later the great quake hit.  Violent shockwaves rocked the city for some 45 to 60 seconds. The earthquake was felt from southern Oregon to south of Los Angeles and inland as far as central Nevada.  For the next four days the city burned.  Although the exact number will never be known, as many as three thousand people perished from the quake and fires.

While the Cliff House survived the '06 earthquake with only $300 in damages, it was widely reported in the newspapers of the day that it had been washed into the sea...
 

Contrary to initial reports, the Cliff House survived with only minor damage (see below)...

The below postcard claims to show where refugees camped after the earthquake, but other postcards of the era also repeated the false claim that the Cliff House had slid into the sea.  Wilkins, the manager of the Cliff House at the time did offer to house refugees (see above clipping), but the distances involved likely made the offer impractical.

"Alarm is also felt for the safety of Mrs. Joseph Schwab, sister-in-law of C. M. Schwab.  Mrs. Schwab has been in San Francisco for several weeks.  She was staying at the Cliff House, which is said to have slid into the sea."

This is a very curious article as the Cliff House was NOT a hotel according to all other information.  So how was she staying there?  As a private guest?  Unknown at this time.