Golden Gate Bridge History

It was the 'Chrysopylae' which eventually proved to be the genesis and inspiration for this magnificent bridge, in 1846. Thanks to captain John Fremont, who came up with the name Chrysopylae for the strait, which connected San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean, now spanning a marvelous bridge. The word Chrysopylae, means golden gate, which later on, became the name of a magnificent vermilion colored suspension bridge in San Francisco - the Golden Gate Bridge. One of the architectural wonders of the 20th century, this bridge has been the most favored attractions in San Francisco for tourists the world over. The text to follow will try and chart the journey of the Golden Gate Bridge, and I will get down to task without further ado!

Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge

Before this bridge was built, there was no practical and short route, connecting Marin County and San Francisco, except boating across a portion of the San Francisco Bay. In 1916, an engineering student, James Wilkin's article kick started this idea in a concrete manner for building The Golden Gate Bridge. The city engineer for San Francisco city came up with a rough figure of around $100million, an almost incredulous figure. Joseph Strauss, an ambitious and dreamy engineer then came in the picture, who later on became the chief engineer of this incredible bridge. He proposed that the bridge could be built for $17 million. After a lot of opposition and obstacles, judicial petitions and discussions, in 1923, things started taking shape for the approval of the construction in Santa Rosa, California. Santa Rosa Chamber took the onus of circulation of petitions for the bridge as a stimulus for its construction. The construction actually started after that, on 5 January 1933. Irving Morrow designed the shape of the bridge towers overall, the lighting scheme, street lights, railings and walkways. Charles Alton Ellis, was the principal engineer of the project, which is a portion of both U.S. Route 101 and California Route 1.

From Northern California, 6 counties pitched in for help and in 1928, a Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District was formed. A $35 million bond issue was appropriated for financing the construction of the bridge. Some of the high points in the construction of the bridge are -

• Marin Anchorage was built from January 1933 through February 1936
• The construction of the Marin Pier went on from January 1933 through June 1933
• San Francisco Pier construction was done between March 1934 through December 1934
• The suspension cables were laid in the period of October 1935 through March 1936.
• Roadway steel construction was done between June 1936 through November 1936
• The laying of deck surface was done from January 1937 through April 1937

Finally, on May 27, 1937, this incredible project got over. It was no mean feat, to build a suspension bridge with a length of 2.7 km, with a width of 90 ft and a height of 746 feet. Huge celebrations, spanning a week, were carried on after the construction of the bridge during its opening. Some of the contractors for the construction of the bridge were -

• For main piers - Pacific Bridge Company
• Anchorages and approach piers - Barrett and Hilp
• Structural steel for Suspension Span - Bethlehem Steel Company
• Cables of the suspension span - John A. Roebling's Sons Company
• Electrical work - Alta Electric & Mechanical Company

It was a long and winding journey for all those involved in the construction, and there were a number of landmarks which happened in the construction of this bridge amongst the most famous bridges of the world. There are a few more facts too, which have to be covered.

Facts about the Golden Gate Bridge

There were umpteen aspects which had to be considered while this bridge was built, and a lot of blood and sweat of the people right from Joseph Strauss to a laborer culminated in the construction of this bridge. Here are some of the facts for your perusal!

• The San Francisco Chronicle referred to the bridge as a thirty-five million dollar steel harp!
• The steel used for the construction of Golden Gate Bridge was fabricated in New Jersey.
• 11 men unfortunately lost their lives during the construction of the bridge.
• When the bridge was opened, the bridge toll was a sum of $0.50 each way and for more than 3 passengers, there was a five cent charge.
• According to folklore about the bridge, the Navy wished to paint the bridge black with yellow stripes, for ensuring that the ships are able to spot it.
• The weight of the bridge today is 887,000 tons (804,700,000 kg) Whoa!
• When the bridge was built, its weight was 894,500 tons (811,500,000 kg).
• Extremely strong winds from the Pacific Ocean are sustained by the bridge with a mid span swing of 27 feet.
• After the bridge was made open, May 27, 1937 was a Pedestrian Day, where 200,000 people crossed the bridge on foot or skates.
• There are around 1,200,000 total rivets involved in the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge.

There are umpteen such innuendos and hidden golden gate history snippets. It is impossible to cover every aspect of history of Golden Gate Bridge in an article, I guess it warrants a book!

Currently, around 104,474 is the average number of vehicles passing through the bridge per day with a toll collection of approximately $ 97,121,446 or more! Whoa! But this apart, there are a number of issues plaguing this legendary bridge. There are economic issues, as well as the issue of suicides. Unfortunately, the Bridge is a very popular spot for suicides. In addition to this, seismic retrofit for resisting earthquakes is a maintenance aspect in progress.

I could have gone on and on about this stunning bridge, but alas, like Joseph Strauss post the construction of the bridge, I will have to say this - The Mighty Task is Done.