Golden Gate Bridge: the history of the American symbol

As O'Henry says: “East is East, and West is San Francisco, this is the opinion of Californians. Californians are not just residents of the state, but a special nation. These are the southerners of the West...” But not only the great writer thought so. Many Americans are still ready to join his opinion. After all, for them the West is not Belgium, Holland, France or Germany, as for many Europeans, but the lands located in the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains, right down to the ocean. California, among them, occupies a special position. Not only because it is the most populous state, leading in terms of gross domestic product in the country, etc., but also because its largest cities are located on the Pacific coast. And San Francisco is one of the most important among them. The main attraction of the city, and its pride, is the Golden Gate Bridge, which connects the shores of the strait of the same name. And there, right behind it, the huge Pacific Ocean is already carrying its waters. Thus, the American love for the West, California and San Francisco, was transformed into a completely special attitude towards the Golden Gate Bridge, turning it into a national symbol. And only once you see his orange-red silhouette hovering over the strait, you will not only understand that he rightfully deserves this universal recognition, but also forever keep the memory of him in your heart.

Фото: Depositphotos

This bridge connected the city of San Francisco and the southern part of California's Marin County, near the suburb of Sausalito. It should be noted that the strait between the inner San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean was for a long time unknown to the Spaniards who lived here. It was discovered by them only in 1769, and on August 5, 1775, Juan de Ayala and the San Carlos team became the first Europeans to cross the strait. Without thinking for long, they named it “Boca del Puerto de San Francisco,” or “mouth of the Port of San Francisco.” But this will become known after the captain of the US Army Topographical Engineering Corps, John C. Fremont, first saw it in 1846, exclaimed: “This is the Golden Gate to trade with the East.” And already in 1848, in documents submitted for approval to the Senate, he will give a more detailed explanation of his words: “I gave this Gate the name Golden Gate for the same reasons that the harbor of Byzantium was called the Golden Horn.” From this moment on, it will forever enter into topographic circulation and appear on American maps. Therefore, the bridge that later connected the strait began to bear the same name. (It is curious how accurately Fremont managed to capture the spirit of the times. After all, his proposal for the name of the strait was approved at the very time when the first prospectors had just begun to take their samples, and could not even imagine the imminent start of the California Gold Rush).

And two years later, in 1850, California itself would be officially recognized as a state within the United States, which would immediately be called the “Golden State.” By that time, the population of San Francisco would have grown from less than a thousand people in 1848 to 25 thousand in 1850. And in the 1860s, the First Transcontinental Railroad reached San Francisco, instantly changing the demographics and economy of the American West. Anglo-Saxon migrants will flock from the east of the country to develop new territories, displacing the Indians and Spanish-speaking Creoles who lived here. At the same time, California will become a place where immigrants from China, previously involved in railway construction, will concentrate. By the 1880s, they would already make up 10% of the state's population. From the second half of the 1879th century, oil began to be extracted in California, and in 20 the Pacific Coast Oil Company was created. Soon, the rapidly developing San Francisco begins to feel that it is cramped within its peninsular borders. And we urgently need a simple and accessible connection with the outside world. Pedestrian, automobile and railway. The ferry service that existed here for many years could no longer satisfy the ever-increasing demand. And therefore, in the 30-1927s of the last century, massive construction of bridges began: in 1929 the Dumbarton Bridge was introduced, in 1933 - the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge, and in XNUMX the construction of the Oakland Bay Bridge began. But they were all internal bay bridges. They could still be built in more or less traditional forms. But a bridge across the strait cannot be built so easily, since it was necessary to cover a span of more than a kilometer, without intermediate supports. The only solution could be the construction of a specially designed suspension bridge. But this was already a super task - the pinnacle of bridge construction. And before we climb it, let's look back and remember

how it all began

It is assumed that the countdown can be conducted from the earliest times, when primitive people, to overcome ravines or rivulets, threw tree trunks over them. Often storms and hurricanes helped them in this. As soon as people learned how to make rafts, immediately these structures adapted for the manufacture of wider bridges. In tropical countries, there was a different tradition of crossing water obstacles and gorges, because there were many plants with long and strong fibers. Such as creepers. Sometimes they hung right over the stream of water, as if forming natural bridges. And because people who lived in those places, quickly learned to move to the other side with the help of ropes, twisted from plant fibers or rawhide. That is, make hanging bridges. The simplest of them were arranged as follows: two parallel thick ropes were fastened, on which the flooring was fixed for the movement of travelers, and two thinner ones, set higher, and serving as a kind of handrail. Such bridges were thrown in separate high-mountainous regions of the Himalayas, in the Inca country in Peru, etc. There were also more complex systems of hanging bridges, where it was necessary to move not along a horizontal plane, but along an inclined one.

And although it was occasionally possible to transport pack animals over such bridges, it was impossible to use them as transport routes. And with the development of trade, it was necessary to move increasingly heavier loads across increasingly wider rivers. Due to the insufficient length of the wooden trunks, the decking of the bridges already had to be laid on intermediate wooden supports, or piles, securing them in the soil at the bottom of the rivers. Over time, these supports became more and more powerful and began to be made of stone. Naturally, the next step was the construction of stone arched bridges (after all, it was impossible to build a horizontal bridge covering from simple stones). These bridges, as well as aqueducts for transporting water, after the collapse of the Roman Empire, have survived in great variety to this day, since Ancient Rome was known as the “empire of roads.” After all, its vast territory could be controlled from the center only thanks to good communications. Roads allowed troops to quickly reach the right place, and officials and merchants to quickly get to any province. An important part of this road network, with a total length of almost 300000 km, were bridges. The Romans built them so thoroughly that today, two millennia later, about 300 of them not only continue to exist, but are also partially in use. For example, the Milvian Bridge, built 2100 years ago north of Rome, even withstood the weight of tanks during the Second World War! Now we can safely say that one of the main achievements of the Romans in construction was the use of natural cement and the introduction of the semicircular arch. The most famous surviving Roman bridges are the Pont du Gard in southern France (14 AD) and the aqueduct in the Spanish city of Segovia (98 AD).

The aqueduct of Pont du Gard and the aqueduct in Segovia. Photo: Vector, collage: ForumDaily

Of course, bridges were built both in the East and in other places. For example, Marco Polo, in a book about his travels around the world, talked about 12000 bridges - wooden, stone and even using iron - built near the ancient Chinese city of Kin-Sai.

Erected through natural barriers, bridges brought together not only opposite shores, but also people living there. Since ancient times, this symbol of unity has taken root, both in our consciousness and in language. We say "build bridges", meaning, build relationships, make friends. Or, on the contrary, “burn bridges behind you,” that is, eliminate the possibility of retreating, changing the decision. The head of the Catholic Church, the Pope of Rome, simultaneously bears the title of "pontiff maximus", which means "the great builder of bridges" and points to his mediating role between Heaven and Earth. Therefore, the time of his reign is called "pontificate". This title came to us from ancient Rome, when the high priest simultaneously with the service in the church, also supervised bridges. That is, already in antiquity, bridges were viewed as a sacred symbol. They became so popular that their name even penetrated into various spheres of human activity: in the automotive industry (rear and front axles of a car), in dental practice (here the bridge is called a denture), etc.

The principles of the construction of bridges laid by the Romans existed for many centuries, until, with the development of technology, in all countries there was no need to build a network of railways. Their routes were laid along optimal routes, and if an obstacle in the form of a river or gorge arose on the way, they should not be bypassed (as before), but blocked off with a bridge. At the same time, their traditional structures could no longer be fully utilized, since the trains required additional consideration of the train movement dynamics, and the heavy freight trains many times exceeded the usual loads on the bridge structures. Thank God that metal structures had already begun to be used. However, with a large length of the bridge, and they had big problems with the bearing capacity. And then the engineers proposed lattices, or trusses, the use of which was economically viable. So the main problem was removed, which existed with wooden beams, which the greater the distance between the supports, the greater the deflection, and the less weight they could bear. The reinforcement concrete, which soon came to replace the metal structure, made it possible to make both independent decisions and to combine them with metal. Thus, the first opportunity appeared to return to the usual “beam” systems, where the design of the road bed rested on the supports, as well as the “arched”, the length of which could be significantly increased.

Thus, the accumulated soon experience and a set of constructive solutions, allowed to solve almost all the pressing problems and requests. But ... With large spans and the inability to install intermediate supports (due to ground conditions or very large depth), the schemes developed were difficult to use. Both for constructive and economic reasons. But nothing new could not come up. And then I had to go back to basics, to what I started many centuries ago, i.e. to the hanging bridges, but at a new level. Thus, in the world practice of bridge building, three types of bridges entrenched: joist, arched and hanging (although, it should have been more correctly called suspended). There were, however, small deviations from the general rule. For example, when it was urgently necessary to transfer a large number of people to the opposite shore, they were used pontoon bridges where instead of supports, objects floating in the water were used - pontoons. Pontoons could also be simply barrels connected to each other, secured to the bottom with anchors. Or some kind of rafts. Possibly ships too. In the history of wars, there are cases when they stood side by side along the entire width of the river, and military units were transported along them to the other side. The first mention of the use of pontoons dates back to 493 BC. e., when the Persian king Darius, on a campaign against the Scythians, managed to transport his army across the Bosporus at the narrowest point of the strait, 700 m wide.

He did this along the first floating bridge, where a wooden deck was laid on moored ships, fastened together by the sides. Since then, pontoon crossings have been used frequently. So the Carthaginian commander Hannibal crossed the Rhone, Alexander the Great crossed the Asian Oxus River, and the Roman Emperor Caligula ordered the construction of a pontoon bridge in the Bay of Naples. Only to later boastfully declare that he “galloped on a horse across the sea.” Pontoons were also used during the last war. Sometimes they are used for peaceful purposes. However, they suffer greatly from floods and ice drifts, and it will be useful to dilute them to allow passage of ships traveling along the river. Therefore, they are most often used as temporary structures. Since we have already mentioned this, it is worth recalling a special group adjustable wrench bridges that have a mobile span to ensure the passage of vessels. They, as a rule, are built on navigable rivers and canals in dense urban development, when it is not possible to "untie" land transport and shipping by other means. In this case, they do not need a high span, and therefore high supports and special entrances. There are a huge number of variations: lifting (used as far back as medieval fortresses), vertically lifting, shifting, unfolding, folding, turning, etc.

The largest number of drawbridges was recorded on the Chicago River (USA). There are 38 of them there. (For reference: there are 19 of them on the Neva in St. Petersburg). But these numbers shouldn't surprise you. The city with the largest number of bridges in the world is undoubtedly Hamburg, Germany. There are about 2500 of them. Of course, among them there are

Hanging bridges

The fact is that the rapid development and development of new lands in America, and then the rapid spread of the railway network throughout the country, led to the need to build a huge number of bridges. Of course, American bridge builders were familiar with traditional construction schemes, but new materials and new tasks to build bridges (due to their growing need) as soon as possible and as cheaply as possible made them turn to the advantages of suspension bridges. The ability to close a large span without expensive intermediate supports - it was very tempting. And it is not surprising that the first hanging bridges arose here. What are they like? This is, first of all, the roadway, powerful support towers, cables and anchoring structures. The roadway of the bridge was suspended on vertical ropes to the main cables. In order for their own weight, as well as the weight of the canvas and the vehicle passing through it, to prevent the towers from tilting towards each other, the cables were passed through their tops and attached to anchors rigidly fixed on the banks.

And already in 1801, in the state of Pennsylvania, Justice of the Peace James Finley built the first bridge suspended on iron chains, with a span of 21 m. In 1807, he built a second bridge, with a span of 39 m. And the next year he received patent for this development. Before his death in 1828, Finlay designed 13 more bridges. This marked the beginning of a new stage in the use of suspension systems. Then the construction of suspension bridges began at a very rapid pace, especially in America. At first, as we see, chain bridges of small spans were built. Those. their supporting element was a chain made up of rings or individual rigid elements connected to each other by bolts. This experience turned out to be contagious, and English engineers immediately made attempts to transfer it to their soil. Built in 1820 in England, the suspension bridge across the Tweed River with a span of 110 m was received with delight. Still would. After all, it cost about 4 times less than a stone bridge of the same length. And in 1826, the Meney Chain Bridge was opened in England, which served for about a hundred years, and already had a span of 177 m. During the same period, a number of bridges were built in France, the USA and other countries, the spans of which did not exceed 150 m. Finally, in 1849, under the leadership of the English engineer Clark, one of the most beautiful chain suspension bridges in Europe was built - the bridge over the Danube River in Budapest (Hungary), the average span of which was 202 m, with a total length of 395 m. The bridge decks were supported two chains consisting of solid links connected by bolts. The width of the bridge deck was 14 m.

Against this background, the construction of the Zähringer Hängebrücke, in what was then still Swiss Freiburg, took place somehow unnoticed in 1834. The bridge had a span of 265 m and a carriageway width of 6,5 m. It was suspended on 4 cables with a diameter of 135 mm, and each cable consisted of 1056 wires with a thickness of 3,8 mm. Why didn't this become a sensation? Because all engineers were well aware that the road surface of the bridge was wooden, i.e. had a small weight, which, as they believed, the cable could withstand. But in America they took this seriously, and therefore the second quarter of the 1850th century was marked here by the widespread use of suspension bridges, in which the main load-bearing element (chain) was replaced by a cable (wire cable). This led to significant progress, since the cable had higher strength compared to the chain and made it possible to expand the range of construction of suspension bridges to very large spans. However, in 102, a disaster occurred on the Maine River in France with the 487 m long Basse-Chaîne Bridge. During a strong wind, a detachment of soldiers came out to attack him. And when the 226th person stepped onto the bridge, the supporting cables burst, the bridge deck collapsed and fell into the river, dragging 1883 people with it. After this incident, the fascination with hanging bridges gave way to disappointment. And therefore, the construction of the famous Brooklyn Bridge in 486 (then called the “Brooklyn and New York Bridge”), with a grand span of 1903 m at that time, became a huge triumph for American engineers. Soon, in 488, the Williamsburg Bridge in New York with a span of 1929 m was commissioned, in 563 the Detroit Bridge with a span of 548 m was commissioned, surpassing the previously built Quebec Bridge with a span of 1931 m. In 1067 it was built The 40 m long bridge across the Hudson is the first bridge to exceed a kilometer span and finally cement the superiority of suspension systems. Of course, all this was well known to bridge engineer Joseph Strauss, who had already participated in the construction of XNUMX bridges. But he had not yet built suspension bridges. However, Joseph is actively involved in the fight for the right to start

construction of the Golden Gate Bridge.

There is a legend that the idea to build a bridge crossing the entrance to San Francisco Bay originated in 1872. It was expressed by the self-proclaimed Emperor of the United States, Norton I. And although he was a very extravagant person and, roughly speaking, was considered a “city madman,” he was treated with care in San Francisco. He moved around the city on a bicycle in his old military uniform, having no money or property. Nevertheless, Norton issued various orders in newspapers and they were published with pleasure. A decree was also published stating that the city needed to build a bridge across the strait, which also indicated the location of its construction. Then his decree was not taken seriously, but years later they built a bridge exactly where he indicated - at the narrowest point of the strait.

Фото: Depositphotos

Decades passed, and already in 1916, the publisher of the San Francisco Call Bulletin newspaper, James Wilkins, decided to remind the residents of San Francisco about the bridge project. Consultations with experts about its technical feasibility and possible cost have begun. Joseph Baermann Strauss, by that time already a fairly experienced engineer in bridge construction, also took part in the discussion. However, his proposal to build a generally traditional bridge, which combined cantilever towers and suspended spans, was rejected. And then he changed the project and, using the latest advances in metallurgy, proposed building a suspension bridge. From an engineering point of view, implementing such a project was quite difficult. It was necessary to take into account the depth of the bay, which exceeded 100 m; powerful ocean currents that occur during high and low tides; frequent fogs - preventing continuous construction work; increased seismic hazard of the area, and also cover the never before achieved free span of 1.3 km. At the same time, ocean-going commercial and military ships had to pass continuously and freely under the bridge during construction.

And while all these considerations and discussions were dragging on, a great depression began in the country, which, due to lack of funding, could put an end to even an already agreed upon project. However, first of all, it was necessary to solve a huge number of organizational problems. The main ones were opposition to the construction by the leadership of the navy based in the bay, whose representatives were afraid that the dimensions of the bridge, the long duration of construction, possible accidents, etc. can lead to blocking access to the open ocean. Which, as you understand, was of paramount importance to them. But Strauss was ready to make any concessions in order to save the project. And then, taking the installation height of 67 m for the bottom of the road structures of the bridge over the strait indicated by them, he added to them 9 m of the road surface, 3 m - the distance from the lower point of deflection of the cable to the road, and 140 m - the depth of its deflection, he received the required the height of the Golden Gate towers is 219 m. This suited the military, and in the end he agreed with them on all issues. Solving problems with protesting trade unions turned out to be much easier. Joseph promised them to use only local construction workers in the construction of the bridge and to personally monitor compliance with safety rules for work on the site. And he kept his promise. He introduced for all workers the wearing of miner's helmets, anti-glare glasses, the installation of safety ropes, and the use of protective wind cream for hands and face. The installers even ate a special diet to avoid dizziness. At times, his demands took on an anecdotal form. So, at the beginning of the working day, he demanded that the foremen be sure to hand out sauerkraut juice to the workers (as a hangover cure). A serious stumbling block was the confrontation between the owners of ferry companies. Naturally, since their entire long-term business was at stake. And although Strauss's plan was adopted by the city in December 1922, it took him another six years of litigation with the owners of the ferry companies that owned all the rights to transport vehicles across the strait. But in 1928, congestion on the ferry crossings became unmanageable. Crowds of people waited for their turn for hours, and sometimes even days. Ultimately, Strauss won this battle. Finally, in 1930, he promised the city that construction would cost about 20-30 million dollars (it turned out to be 35), and within a few years would pay off due to toll collection, but he finally approved the project. This happened in the midst of the Great Depression, so actual construction began only on January 5, 1933, thanks to the fact that F.D. Roosevelt defeated Hoover, who had failed to end poverty in the country, and proclaimed the “New Deal” to revive the economy. And although four long years of construction work lay ahead, Joseph breathed a sigh of relief. The goal he had been striving for for so long was achieved.

And he was born in 1870 in Cincinnati (Ohio), into an intelligent family of Jewish immigrants from Germany. His father, Raphael Strauss, was engaged in painting and literature, and his mother, Caroline Berman, was a pianist. It is known that Joseph himself was fond of poetry and music since childhood, and it was impossible to even imagine that he would glorify his name as an engineer. Short and unathletic, Joseph was no different from his peers. One day, after being hospitalized after being injured during a football game, he found himself in a room where the graceful silhouette of the Cincinnati-Covington Bridge could be seen from the windows. He had passed it many times and knew that it had been built by John Roebling, who had made his name famous with the newly built bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan. But now he had no choice but to look out the window and notice more and more new features and details in it. As biographers suggest, it was then that his dream began to become like Roebling and build the largest bridge in the world. (How intricately life weaves its patterns. Without this incident, Joseph would have become a writer, a musician, or, in extreme cases, would have taken up economics, which he studied at the university. But he decided to build the famous bridge, and still built it. And in our time, his fellow soldiers, admired by the orange-red silhouette of the Golden Gate, decided to paint the bridge, which he admired as a child, also in some unusual color. And now, after painting, it became the “Blue Roebling” ). And young Joseph, after graduating from the University of Cincinnati in 1892, initially worked as an engineer in the construction firm of Ralph Modjeski in Chicago, designing drawbridges, and in 1904 he created his own architectural bureau, the Strauss Bascule Bridge Company. However, the dream of a grandiose structure never leaves the designer, and ultimately brings him to San Francisco. Of course, on his part, it was a complete gamble. And although he really had a lot of experience in building bridges, it wasn’t like this at all. He knew nothing about cables, or about the methods of constructing suspension bridges, or about their design and calculations. But he had drive, determination and exorbitant ambition. (By the way, about ambitions. While still preparing for his thesis at the university, he took up the development of a topic no more and no less than a bridge or tunnel across the Bering Strait). But the main thing that could not be taken away from Joseph Strauss was his remarkable organizational skills.

And he suggests that the architectural part of the project be taken up by then-famous architect Morrow Irving, who had already completed a course of study at the universities of Berkeley and Beaux-Arts in Paris. He will give the bridge a graceful, elegant and strict contour, using elements of Art Deco style then popular in the design, and will offer to paint it in an unusual orange-red color. And also to illuminate the bridge at night - which will only be done 50 years later. And just as importantly, Strauss invites one of the best specialists in suspension bridges to take part in the construction - Riga immigrant Lev Moiseev, who was a consultant on the construction of the Manhattan Bridge in New York. And Ellis Charles, a very knowledgeable and qualified mathematician, took up the calculations. But what were the calculations in those distant times, when there was no computer software, and serious computing equipment? This is how Kevin Star, a professor of history at the University of Southern California, wrote about this: "In those days they had a notebook and two pencils, and they did all the calculations on paper and in the head." Not to mention that the methods of calculations themselves were imperfect then. Bridge builders using metal trusses are well aware of the story of how bridge scientist D. Zhuravsky, to determine the difference in stresses in the truss rods, made wire models, then loaded them, and passed them along the rods with a bow. The highest pitch was at the pillars of the supports, and closer to the center, it decreased. Thus, a theory was created by trial and error. And in the suspension bridges, where only the cable was actually involved, and it was impossible. Here, a lot depended on the experience, qualifications and intuition of the calculators. However, later, when all the main work will actually be done by them, conflicts will begin in the team and Strauss will dismiss both of them, ostensibly without even paying off. At least, their names you will not find on a memorial plaque placed on the bridge. (And only in our time, when drawings and calculations made by Ellis will be found in the archive, he will be given posthumous honors). And although then, in support of Strauss, other engineers were accepted, but now during the whole construction time he had to actually solve all the organizational issues for the construction of a bridge, and for interacting with contractors. We began with the device anchor structures, then moved to the construction of concrete foundations for the towers. The tower's support from the side of San Francisco was located at 335 meters from the coast, which required the construction of an additional dam and significantly complicated the work. The fact is that the water depth in this place exceeded 90 m; and during ebb and flow such a fast current arose that the work had to be stopped. It could only be carried out in those short hours, when the huge waves calmed down and the tide was replaced by an ebb tide or vice versa.

The tower’s support from the Marine District was erected in shallow water, near the shore, so its concreting was much easier. Then they erected the supports themselves, which were assembled from individual modules, holding together approximately 1,2 million steel rivets. In honor of the completion of this most difficult construction, the last scored rivet was made of gold. At the next stage, it was necessary to transfer the cables from one anchor, through the tower, to the opposite bank to the second tower and its anchor, and combine them into a common bundle. Each cable consisted of 27000 individual 5-millimeter wires, tightly woven into strong beams with a total diameter of 92,5, see. In the end, a roadbed was suspended on the cables. He began to build immediately on both sides, and at the same time, to avoid sagging of the cables. And finally, on May 27 of the year 1937, ahead of schedule, the grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge took place.

Pedestrians were the first to enter, and the next day, at a signal from President Roosevelt, he was "open to cars and the whole world." At the meeting, at its opening, Strauss read his own poem written by him on this occasion and said: “This bridge does not need praise or panegyrics. He speaks for himself. We, who have worked so long, are grateful. The fact that Nature has long been split into pieces, today man has connected

So the bridge was built, which, with the length of 2737 m., And the size of the main span - 1280 m., Became the largest suspension bridge in the world, from the moment of its opening in the 1937 year to the 1964 year. Having promised the unions to continuously monitor the safety of their workers, Strauss, for the first time in the practice of erecting suspension bridges, pulled a protective net under the construction site. This saved the lives of many workers who had accidentally slipped from the bridge. But once a misfortune happened. Logs from a collapsed system of scaffolding, broke the net when it fell and carried 10 people along. The death of these people was hard for the whole leadership.

You can imagine how Strauss would be amazed if he knew that after the construction was completed, about 1700 people completed their lives by throwing him down - into the boiling water, and his favorite child would become one of the most popular places for suicides in the world. And that, on average, suicide attempts occur on this bridge every two weeks. Numerous suggestions about the device on the bridge fence, always met here repulse. Opponents believed that installing fences would only spoil the appearance of the bridge, and would only lead to a change in the place of suicide. In the end, it was only in 2018 that the designers (partially using the ideas of Strauss, who hung safety nets under the bridge), offered to install metal consoles with a horizontal netting device far below both sides of the bridge. It is assumed that in a couple of years this proposal will be implemented, and the gray grid with orange-red painted consoles will in fact merge with the bridge structures and will be completely invisible from afar. But while the bridge continues to be patrolled by the local police and security agencies cooperating with it. And along its span, special telephones were installed, through which potential suicides could contact the crisis counseling center. The inscriptions near these phones report: “There is hope. Make the call. "The consequences of jumping from this bridge are fatal and tragic." ("There is hope. Call. The consequences of a jump from this bridge are fatal and tragic.") Yet, some people managed to survive. A total of about 30 people. However, almost all of them received very serious injuries, and then they had to be treated for a long time in the hospital.

Thus, some inconsistencies arose in the image of the bridge. On the one hand, it was already known throughout the world as a reliable, elegant and beautiful building, with a romantic name, mysteriously peeking out from the eternal mists and calling for long journeys into a mysterious world, where all dreams, desires and dreams will certainly come true. And on the other side - “Suicide Bridge”. This duality of image created for him a very special aura, which was not only immediately caught, but also adopted by many directors who began filming the Golden Gate Bridge in cult films - especially in the genres of fantasy and action films. Such as: “Superman”, “Escape from Alcatraz”, “Interview with the Vampire”, “X-Men: The Last Stand”, “Terminator: Let the Savior Come”, “Terminator: Genisys”, “Pacific Rim” and up to fifty other films.

After the construction was completed, Strauss received a great reward from the city and the right to lifelong free travel on the bridge. However, he had to use this privilege for a very short time: a year after the opening of the Golden Gate, he passed away. He was 68 years old, and his heart just could not stand the huge nervous and physical overloads of recent years. Later, grateful townspeople, next to the bridge he built, will erect a bronze monument to him.

Which he undoubtedly deserved. After all, this bridge was built primarily thanks to his persistence, energy, patience, contact and, most importantly, unconditional faith in success. Over the last 15 years of his life, he fought hard for his project, overcoming numerous obstacles. Even when everyone around convinced me of the impossibility of its implementation and the futility of the struggle. But he nevertheless continued to raise funds, obtain building permits, negotiate contracts and resolve numerous conflicts. Including with ferry companies, who were afraid of competition, and with the Ministry of Defense, which at first feared interference with the movement of military ships across the strait, and later demanded that the bridge be painted “black-yellow-striped” (which would disfigure the entire structure), and then also with trade unions .

Фото: Depositphotos

It seemed that with everyone realizing that it was the connection of San Francisco with Northern California that would save the Californian economy from a deep crisis, and the urgent need for this bridge specifically for the city - no one except him wanted to make any serious efforts to implementation of this task. Not to mention the fact that until the last day many did not believe that this bridge would still be built and put into operation. But when everything seemed to have been overcome, only then did real hell begin for him. For four continuous years, every day, he had to solve problems and tasks for which he was not prepared and with which he was not familiar. But his firm confidence in his mission forced him to move only forward and solve issues that not only he, but no one else had ever had to solve.

Of course, he had an amazing instinct, and he almost always managed to find the right solution. Naturally, during subsequent reconstructions, a number of mistakes will be revealed. But the specialists who discovered them, 30-40 years after the completion of the work, already had completely different knowledge, experience and technology. But in 1951, when San Francisco was hit by a severe hurricane, and under the influence of a terrible storm, the bridge deviated to the right by almost 8 meters, but the structures still survived and remained unharmed. The same thing happened in 1989, when the city experienced a major earthquake. The bridge stood again with only minor damage. So, we can confidently say that the city was lucky with Joseph Strauss. (There was another Strauss in San Francisco, with whom he was also lucky. Levi Strauss, creator of Levi's jeans - another brand that made the city famous).

Фото: Depositphotos

But as the years passed, bridge construction gained experience and sought to increasingly increase the span length. The road surface began to be reinforced with longitudinal beams or trusses that distribute the load. We have developed methods to increase rigidity and reduce vibrations, and measures to protect against wind gusts and earthquakes. When designing bridges, cable-stayed structures began to be introduced more and more widely. Already in 1965, the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was built in New York, with an average length of 1298 m - the last American world record, which is still a national record. And in 1997, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge was built in Japan, which was twice included in the Guinness Book of Records: as the longest suspension bridge (the length of its free span was 1991 m), and as the highest bridge. Its pylons rose to a height of 297 m, which is higher than a ninety-story building, and the total length was 3911 m. However, among the thousands of suspension bridges around the world, the Golden Gate ranks among the fifteen most famous. And we can talk endlessly about the love of all the residents of San Francisco and the country for him. But is it possible to say better about the beauty and grandeur of the Golden Gate than the heroes of Jack London, the writer who was born and worked in this city: “...don’t you ever think that you will simply die of boredom if you don’t know that over those hills, over the next and over the next? And the Golden Gate! Behind them are the Pacific Ocean, China, Japan, India and... and the Coral Islands. You can sail through the Golden Gate anywhere: to Australia, to Africa, to seal rookeries, to the North Pole, to Cape Horn. And it seems to me that all these places are just waiting for me to come and see them.”

Who among us has not dreamed of distant countries? How many left, sailed, or flew away from their native places. With all the options, we hit the road. And then there are those who end up staying here forever in sunny southern San Francisco. And many still only dream of getting here. To this delightfully beautiful city nestled in the hills. Diverse and diverse, where the past and the future connect at every step. A city that stores hundreds of stories and legends, and wants to tell them to you. As the first tour guides advertised themselves in ancient times: “42 legends and sights on 42 hills await you.” These hills, the cable car and Lombard Street with its eight hairpin turns make traveling along it a thrilling ride: up and down. There is an ultra-modern center with the Salesforce Tower, Transamerica Pyramid and Millennium Tower, and the historical Telegraph Hill with the Coit Tower. Curious Victorian mansions in upscale Nob Hill, fashionable shops in the relaxed gay district of Castro, and the world's largest Chinatown. And how beautiful is the Embarcadero running along the port embankment; the famous Pier 39, with its seafood restaurants; the Hyatt Regency Hotel, with a rotating rooftop restaurant; or Baker Beach, with an excellent view of the Golden Gate.

It’s worth coming here in the evening, going out to the bay, settling down on its shore, putting your face in the breeze, looking at the bay and comparing Jack London’s impressions with your own: “The bay shone like a strip of molten metal, and here and there the sails of ships were white.” , now motionless, now lazily sliding along the flow. In the distance, in the silvery mist, Tamalpais rose; The Golden Gate actually turned golden in the rays of the setting sun...” And now, in the gathering twilight, the bridge will rise in front of you in all its glory. Admiring not at all for the powerful supports, reminiscent of the Middle Ages, or the large ligature of supporting chains, but for some elusive airiness, a subtle and perfect stroke of the architect. His immaculate, eternally youthful art deco, gracefully applied to the shores of the bay, right where the colors of water and sky merge. And it seems that even the fogs visit it only to make us look more closely at its bizarre outlines on the horizon. The pride and calling card of San Francisco, and one of the main symbols of not only the City, California, the West, but the entire country. The Golden Gate Bridge, which now, already saying goodbye to us, “really” is golden in the rays of the setting sun.

This article by ForumDaily author, journalist Leonid Rajewski is part of the “History of American Symbols” series.

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