Golden+Gate+Bridge

Hannah Brazier __THE BEGINNING OF THE BRIDGE__
 * __The Golden Gate Bridge__

** ** __IMPORTANT PEOPLE__ ** (in order from the beginning of this event to the end)
 * The story of the bridge began in the late 19th century, "after San Francisco emerged as a shipping, banking, and railroad industry center during the California Gold Rush."
 * The California Gold Rush was an event on January 24, 1848 where gold was discovered in a stream at Sutter's Mill, California by a man named James Marshall. News spread very quickly and tons of people from the eastern United States and all over the world came to the California gold fields, "in search of their fortunes."


 * ** Joshua Norton ** - Was failed gold miner who became mentally ill. He called himself, "Emperor Norton l of the United States." In 1869 Norton was also the very first person to publicly put forward the idea of building a bridge across the Golden Gate Strait to reduce ferry traffic. Many said he was crazy to think such a big dream and how it was impossible to build such a bridge.
 * ** Charles Crocker ** - He was one of the leading planners and investors of the transcontinental railroad. After a few years had passed since Norton came forward with the idea for a bridge, Crocker put together a "group of experts to discuss the structure and costs of building a bridge from San Francisco to Marin."
 * ** James Wilkins ** - Wilkins was the editor of the San Francisco News Call-Bulletin. After the earthquake of 1906 which shattered San Francisco, and after the rebuilding of San Francisco, the traffic throughout the bay still continued to worsen. Wilkins was the one San Franciscan to reconsider the bridge proposal, so he then "launched an editorial campaign calling for the creation of the bridge."
 * ** Michael O'Shaughnessy ** - Was an engineer employed by San Francisco and one of Wilkins readers. O'Shaughnessy heard about Crocker's proposal and "took up the cause & began to quiz his colleagues throughout the nation about the possibility of building such a bridge." Many engineers said the idea of the bridge could never be done.
 * ** Joseph B Strauss ** - He was an engineer who had designed over 350 spanning draw bridges throughout the United States, and actually thought that the building of the bridge was possible.

__TOGETHER STRAUSS AND O'SHAUGHNESSY WORKED TOGETHER TO MAKE THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE A REALITY.__
 * ** Irving Morrow ** - He was a local architect. Morrow was brought into the project by Strauss for the decorative considerations.
 * ** John A. Roebling, Sons Co ** - Roebling was an engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge. He invented the steel cables for the golden gate bridge.

(Irving Morrow's sketch of the golden gate bridge, the designer who chose the art deco style and international orange color)

__**REASONS FOR BUILDING THIS DREAM BRIDGE:**__ **-Ferry traffic linking the busy city of San Francisco to Marin. -"Gateway to the Redwood Forests."**

__**REASONS PEOPLE THOUGHT IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE:**__ ** -Accidents frequently occurred because it was so extremely busy. These accidents were caused by the expansion of Marin's communities and "the need of its residents to commute to San Francisco for their employment and services."

-Many people didn't take the idea of building a bride seriously. Instead, they "considered too expensive, or architecturally and technologically impossible." **
 * -Many experts feared it would be impossible to build the bridge because of the weather conditions. **


 * ** strong winds blew through the Golden Gate Strait ---> connected the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay. **

** - The e ** ** arthquake of 1906 in San Francisco .250,000 people were homeless after their houses were destroyed and they questioned if the bridge could withstand a similar event
 * ** structure of the bridge needed to be at least a mile long, have a construction and maintenance plan **

__THE BRIDGE FINALLY STARTED TO BE BUILT ON JANUARY 5, 1933__ ** __**CONSTRUCTION DISADVANTAGES**__ There were many challenges in order to build the Golden Gate Bridge: Very dangerous

Fog ---> covered the channel. making it impossible to see Strong sea currents ---> slowed down the work in clearing the area where the bridge was being built High winds ---> "made construction treacherous (unpredictable dangers) for workers" As a result, safety rules or measures were made for the construction crew

__**ENFORCED SAFETY RULES BY JOSEPH B. STRAUSS**__

__Strauss insisted:__ special safey headgear and goggles ---> invented by Edward Bullard (local safety manufacturer) The headgear and goggles which was invented back then, soon and permanently "became the prototypes for today's hard hats and glare-free safety goggles" that workers use on construction sites today. moisture-rich lotions ---> workers had to wear a lot of lotion to prevent the brutal effects of the sun and wind high-energy diets ---> put on these diets so that they would be less prone to vertigo. (type of disease) safety net ---> most important precaution in the bridge building. **__SAFETY NET:__**

-most important precaution in the building of the bridge -introduced during the project -cost of $130,000 -hung 60 feet below the workers -cost was outweighed by the value of the 19 lives it saved -workers who fell into the net called themselves the "Halfway to Hell Club" -12 men lost their lives during the construction -February 1937 ---> 11 men fell to their deaths ---> their scaffold broke through the net. (first man was killed by a falling beam) -"The fact that only 12 men lost thier lives during the building of the Golden Gate Bridge signaled a new level of safety in bridge construction" * " all of these precautions, personally enforced by Strauss, became the foundation of national construction safety regulations" * (picture of Joseph B. Strauss) (worker gazes down in his safety helmet and suit)

__THE ENDING__

** The bridge finally began being built on January 5, 1933 and was finished on April 15, 1937. (4 years) final cost ---> $35 million

"Strauss's design has been tested throughout the bridge's history by harsh winds, the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 (a magnitude 6.9), and tremendous automobile traffic." "The fact that the bridge survived the massive earthquake unscathed and has only been closed three times due to high winds is a testament to Strauss's engineering genius." "It continues to serve commuters well and remains a symbol of human ingenuity."

__** ever since the opening of the bridge: **__ -the golden gate has become one of the most famous bridges in the world -very popular destination for tourists -the symbol of San Francisco -backdrop of many movies and popular songs

__BASIC FACTS ABOUT THE BRIDGE__


 * One of the most beautiful and biggest icons in San Francisco.
 * Weighs close to 890,000 tons
 * Spanning 1.7 miles
 * 220 feet above the water
 * Links the San Francisco Peninsula to Marin County
 * The bridge "holds a unique place in the hearts of Californians because of its unique design and dramatic location."
 * Most popular place in the United States to commit suicide. (31 people in 2009) (and more than 13,000 since it was built)



**OVERALL TIMELINE** __1919-__ "San Francisco Board of Supervisors asked the U.S. Congress to conduct a federal survey of the Golden Gate Strait" __1920-__ "USS Natoma sounded the channel for a survey" O'Shaughnessy gave the survey results to 3 engineers (one being Strauss) ---> this was to get their opinion on the cost of constructing the bridge Strauss's estimate in construction was around $27 million. (much less those of his colleagues) __1922-__ Strauss & O'Shaughnessy "joined forces with San Francisco mayoral assistant Edward Rainey to create a political office for the creation of the bridge." __1923-__ Sonoma County banker ---> Franklin Pierce Doyle put together a financial and business representatives from 21 counties located in Northern California. group name: "Association of Bridging the Gate" What they did: "convinced the California legislature to pass the Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District Act of California by May 1923 ---> this gave the association the right to create a new district for constructing and maintaining a bridge" The land on either side of the bridge was owned by the Federal War Department. ---> construction could not start without their (department's) permission. after they reviewed the construction and finance plans ---> they "issued the permit due in part to the project's tremendous public support" __1929-__ "Strauss was named the chief engineer of the project" __1929-__ crash of the stock market ---> Great Depression

__1930__- Strauss brought a local architect (Irving Morrow), into the project for decorative considerations.Strauss and a team of brilliant architects created the bridge, while Morrow "conceived of the art deco lines of the bridge and its striking color."the bridge's color name was called : International Orange 1930- Strauss presented his final designs of the bridge. ---> spanned 4,200 feet across the strait. __1932__-district awarded contracts close to $24 million for the construction of the bridge. __1933__- work finally began on the bridge. ("that many dreamed of for decades.") __**1937**__ - bridge was finally finished ($35 million)  MAY 27, 1937 :  -a week-long "Golden Gate Bridge Fiesta celebration" was declared. ---> many people lined up across the bridge for the very first time  -the following day ---> President Franklin D. Roosevelt ---> announced opening of the bridge to the whole world by telegraph. -cars and other vehicles were also allowed to cross the bridge for the first time that day. -end of the day ---> 32,300 vehicles & 19,350 pedestrians had crossed the famous golden gate bridge. -many locals were very proud of this new bridge and the rest of the world was stunned by it's architecture and beauty. 1938 - "San Francisco's image was further enhanced by the Golden Gate Exposition of 1938, which used the Golden Gate Bridge as its iconic logo." "Treasure Island" ---> "built in the bay for the exposition ---> so that visitors could enjoy gorgeous views of the bridge."

__RESOURCES:__

http://www.americanhistory.abclio.com/Search/Display.aspxcategoryid=4&entryid=1093087&searchtext=golden+gate+bridge&type=simple&option=all&searchsites=4,5,6,8 @http://www.dywidag-systems.com/fileadmin/resources/images/references/bridges/DSI_Seismic_Retrofit_Golden_Gate_Bridge.jpg @http://www.wallpaperramp.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/golden-gate-bridge-4.jpg