Golden Gate Bridge,SanFrancisco

Golden Gate Bridge – Technical Masterpiece

The Golden Gate Bridge, a technical masterpiece, is a suspension bridge from the Golden Gate strait, which is a mile wide, three mile long channel located between San Francisco and the Pacific Ocean. Many felt the need to build a bridge to connect San Francisco to Marin County and since San Francisco was the largest American city, it was still served by ferry boats due to the absence of a permanent link with communities around the bay and the city’s growth rate went below the national average.

Several experts were of the opinion that the bridge would not be built across the 6,700 ft. strait due to the strong, swirling tides and currents, with water of 372 ft. deep at the centre of the channel together with strong winds.

They were also apprehensive of the ferocious winds as well as the blinding fogs which would prevent the operation as well as the construction. The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge commenced in 1933 which was designed by engineer Joseph Strauss and built to connect San Francisco and Marin County across a 1600 metre wide strait which came to be known as the Golden Gate that linked the San Francisco Bay with the Pacific Ocean.

One of the Wonders of the Modern World

It links the U.S. city of San Francisco towards the northern tip of San Francisco Peninsula, to Marin County, joining both the U.S. Route 101 as well as California State Route 1 across the strait and is one of the most internationally recognized structures of San Francisco, California and the United States.

The Bridges has also been declared as one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers. When the bridge reached its completion in 1937, it was considered as the world’s longest and the tallest suspension bridge which not only seemed to be an impossible project but also got completed within a span of four years.

It became one of the world’s greatest architectural icons which have influenced bridge design. Being the longest suspension bridge in the world, its mythical construction will always make it the bridge of all bridges as well as one of the most powerful urban structures that has ever been built.

Golden Gate Ferry Company – Largest Ferry Operation

Before the construction of the bridge the only possible route between San Francisco and what is presently Marin County was by boat across a section of San Francisco Bay with ferry services operating from 1820 with regular scheduled service which began in the 1840s to transport water to San Francisco.

Eventually, it was the Golden Gate Ferry Company, a Southern Pacific Railroad subsidiary, launched by the Sausalito Land and Ferry Company, in 1867 to become the largest ferry operation in the world towards late 1920s.

The Southern Pacific’s automobile ferries for railroad passengers as well as customers only, became profitable and good economy for that region and the duration of ferry crossing between the Hyde Street Pier in San Francisco as well as Sausalito in Marin County took around 20 minutes with a cost of US$1.00 per vehicle, which was later reduced to compete with the new bridge.

From San Francisco Ferry Building, the trip took about 27 minutes. The construction of the world’s largest suspension bridge being a colossal task became one of the wonders and a worldwide fame.