Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge
May 27, 1937 was Pedestrian Day in San Francisco. This kicked off a week-long
celebration of the new Golden Gate Bridge. Pedestrian Day meant that the bridge was
open to foot traffic for 25 cents per person. About 200,000 people paid the fee and
crossed the 1.7-mile span in their walking shoes or on roller skates. For the first time, it
was possible to walk across the San Francisco Bay, from the northern tip of San
Francisco to the southern end of Marin County. Automobile traffic was permitted the
next day at noon.
Before the Golden Gate Bridge was constructed, San Francisco was a relatively isolated
city. It sat at the top of a peninsula, surrounded on three sides by water that was difficult
to cross. The Golden Gate itself is a narrow strip of water at the mouth of the San
Francisco Bay. With strong currents and a depth of 400 feet, the Golden Gate strait is
foreboding to sailors. On the other hand, circumnavigating the whole San Francisco Bay
has its drawbacks too: the trip is hundreds of miles long and involves crossing several
rivers, which can become shallow sand traps.
For these reasons, ferry service between San Francisco and Marin County began in 1820.
First the ferry was only for railroad passengers, but later on people could bring their
automobiles in tow. This became booming business.
When bridge proposals became serious, the ferry companies, including the Southern
Pacific Railroad Company, opposed any bridge as competition. The military also
objected to spanning the San Francisco Bay; they questioned whether the bridge would
interfere with war ships. People in general wondered about the sturdiness of a suspension
bridge, which is held by cables and strung between towers. Could such a bridge withstand
the Bays strong gusts of wind? How would the bridge remain rooted in the ocean floor?
Nonetheless, by the 1900s it was evident that ferries alone could not handle travel
demands. The citys growth would be restricted until it overcame obstacles to trading
with Northern California. In 1916 the Chicago-based engineer Joseph Strauss responded
to San Franciscos call for bridge submissions. Immediate local support mixed with
alleged bribery helped him secure support from the city council. Strauss personally
traveled north, too, to lobby Marin County council members and business people. He
assured them that once a bridge was built from San Francisco, their businesses and
property values would grow. He gained their support. By 1932, the founder of San
Francisco-based Bank of America agreed to finance the estimated $30 million project.
Work started in 1933.
The Golden Gate Bridge blueprints were improved upon since Strausss original
submission. Strauss had little experience with suspension style bridges, so he hired a
team of architects who made significant contributions. Today, the Purdue professor
Charles Ellis is widely recognized as being the main architect behind the bridge, while
Strauss is regarded as its organizer and promoter. A San Francisco architect named Irving
Morrow, who was part of Strausss team, also made important contributions. He
suggested painting the bridge a color he called international orange. This would
complement the surrounding blues and greens of nature, and simultaneously make the
bridge visible through fog. (If the bridge coloring had been left to the government or
Strauss, it would likely have been black.) Irving also designed the bridges arches to play
with light throughout the day, making the bridge especially pleasing to the eye. Electric
lighting along the cables adds to the visual appeal at night.
The project was completed within four years and under budget at $27 million. The final
project was built to withstand the Bays high winds; it can sway 27 feet and still safely
hold traffic. It has only been closed a few times since 1937 when winds reached 70 miles
per hour.
Today, ferry service continues between San Francisco and Marin County, but the Golden
Gate Bridge carries over 40 million passengers each year.
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Tag: Chicago
The Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story skyscraper located in New York City. It’s
named for New York, the “Empire State”. When the building opened in 1931, it was the
tallest building in the world! It was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1986.
The Empire State Building was erected as part of a worldwide race to build the tallest
structure. The United States previously held the record with the 555-foot Washington
Monument, but then France built the 984-foot Eiffel Tower in 1889. By the early 20th
century, architects across America tried to set new records.
The Metropolitan Life Tower signaled a start to the race in 1909; the building rose 700
feet and 50 stories. The 57-story Woolworth Building followed in 1913, and the 71-story
Bank of Manhattan was completed in 1929. (Of course, since this was the Depression,
there was ironically little demand for office space!)
Competition then intensified within New York State. Three skyscrapers were underway
simultaneously: the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, and 40 Wall Street.
The Empire State Building’s rental manager, Hamilton Weber, described the architectural
contest:
We thought we would be the tallest at 80 stories. Then the
Chrysler went higher, so we lifted the Empire State to 85
stories, but only four feet taller than the Chrysler. Raskob
[the financer] was worried that Walter Chrysler would pull
a trick — like hiding a rod in the spire and then sticking it
up at the last minute.
The Empire State Building architects decided to affix something to the top of the building
for even more height. This led to a dirigible (blimp) docking station. However, the
docking station did not last long. The building itself created powerful updrafts that made
docking dangerous! The mooring devices are still in place, but the building’s current
height (1,453 feet) comes from a large broadcast antennae added in 1952.
The Empire State Building houses 85 stories of commercial and office space totaling
more than two million square feet. With 1,000 businesses inside, the building has its own
zip code! The top 16 stories comprise the art deco tower, with observatories located on
the 86th and 102nd floors. (High-powered binoculars are available for rent.) The
skyscraper has 72 elevators, 70 miles of piping, and 2.5 million feet of electrical wiring.
The entire building weighs an estimated 370,000 tons and cost $40 million to construct.
Colored floodlights were added to the building’s tower in 1964. These are used to mark
seasonal events like Christmas and tragedies like the World Trade Center attacks in 2001.
Following September 11, 2001, the floodlights were kept red, white, and blue for several
months. Blue lights were used on Frank Sinatra’s 80th birthday and when he died. (This
was a reference to his nickname, Ol’ Blue Eyes.) Sports events are also represented by
lights; for example, a combination of orange, blue, and white signifies a New York
Knicks home game. The Empire State Building was bathed in a royal purple to honor the
Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. This was a sign of thanks from the New York
Mayor Michael Bloomberg after the UK supported the United States in the aftermath of
September 11th. The floodlights first celebrated a Muslim holiday in 2007 with green
lights for Eid ul-Fitr, the end of Ramadan.
When the Empire State Building opened on May 1, 1931, it was the tallest building in the
world at 1,250 feet high. Towering over the corner of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street,
it became an instant icon of New York City. The building remained the world’s tallest
until the World Trade Center’s North Tower was erected in 1972. The Sears Tower in
Chicago surpassed both in 1973. After the September 11th attacks in New York, the
Empire State Building once again became the tallest building in the state, and the second-
tallest in the country. The United Arab Emirates set the world record in 2007 while
building the Burj Dubai skyscraper.
Although “superskyscrapers” are now being constructed worldwide, the Empire State
Building made achievements that prompted the American Society of Civil Engineers to
name it one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.
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Hot Dogs and Pizza
Any attempt to really come to appreciate the amazing sightseeing that is possible in America would have to include stops in some of the countrys truly great cities. For some reason when we think of outstanding cities of America, we tend to drift to the coasts. And to be sure from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle to the west to New York, Boston and Washington to the east, there are some amazing American cities on those two coasts.
But to neglect the Midwest entirely and not include some of the great cities in the center of the country would leave out some of the most amazing experiences you might have on your sightseeing tour. In fact, of all the Midwest cities, Chicago Illinois can give any city on the coasts a run for their money.
But Chicago is very much its own kind of place, unlike even the urban cities of the east coast. Chicago has its own lore, perpetuated by movies and television just as much as LA or New York. But the thing to remember about that kind of lore is that the movies didnt invent that kind of excitement. It was already very much a part of Chicago and film makers just like making that part of their movies.
When we think about Chicago, it is easy to think of the great food there. The famous Chicago Style Hot Dog or Chicago Pizza has become such a renowned taste treat that it is imitated often, but never repeated. That is because a big part of the great tastes of Chicago comes from actually BEING in Chicago when you eat these delicious meals. So if you include Chicago in your sightseeing plans, you may want to put the diet on hold for a few days so you dont miss some tastes that can only be had there.
But there is so much more to see and enjoy in a big international city like Chicago. Of course if you are a baseball fan, to catch a Cubs game in season is an experience of a lifetime. In addition to that experience, Chicago has many world class things to see and do not the least of which is an art museum that can stand its own next to the great museums of New York or Washington.
But if you put in a full day of sightseeing all around Chicago, you might need to rest up because the Chicago night life is not to be missed. The music of this great city is world renowned. The famous movie The Blues Brothers is based on the wonderful diversity of Jazz music that grew up in the Chicago music scene. In fact, in the world of Jazz aficionados, Chicago is put right up there with New Orleans as one of the great spawning grounds of the uniquely American music of Jazz.
And while we are on the subject of entertainment, there is a little improvisational comedy group called Second City that has made its home in Chicago for some fifty years. Second City can boast some of the biggest stars in comedy that got their comedic training in Chicago. In fact, to a large extent the Saturday Night Live troupe drew and continues to draw extensively from the talent developed in Second City. Some of the alumni include John Belushi, Billy Chrystal, Dan Ackroyd, John Candy, Eugene Levy and many, many more.
Chicago is very much a melting pot of great American culture. From the architecture to the food to the museums to the jazz and comedy, there are few cities in the country, even in the world that can give you as great a sightseeing experience as the great city of Chicago, Illinois.
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