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The History of the Golden Gate Bridge Essay

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Stretching across the San Francisco Bay stands the world famous Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge is located in one of nature’s most beautiful settings, spanning the mile-wide bay from Fort Point in San Francisco to the Marin County Shore. Joseph Strauss, specializing in bridge building, was the leader of the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. The start of construction began on January 5, 1993 and, after four years, was completed on April 27, 1997. The bridge was needed to be built because of the growing population after the California Gold Rush. The bridge was a difficult task for engineers and is now an inspiration. The Golden Gate Bridge is one of the largest suspension bridges and is well known around the world. The Golden Gate …show more content…

He was most certainly familiar with the job.
In 1919, a study was begun to see if it would be possible to build a bridge across the Golden Gate. Michael O’Shaughnessy was the San Francisco city engineer. He was in charge of the rebuilding of the city after the devastating 1906 earthquake that destroyed much of the city. O’Shaughnessy knew the need for the city to have bridges. Most said it could not be done and others said it could be done but “it would cost about $100 million to build it” (Barter 23). O’Shaughnessy and Strauss, both wanting the same thing, got together. After the two consulted, they figured the only way to bridge the channel was to use a suspension bridge.
Once O’Shaughnessy and Strauss believed they could build the bridge, politics came into the picture. In 1923, the California state legislature passes a bill that allowed the establishment of a Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District. The district’s job was to oversee the project and run the bridge once it was built. Over the next few years, many people spoke up both for and against the building of the bridge. The land on both ends of the bridge was owned by the U.S. military. Before any plans could move forward, the military would have to approve the project and give the Bridge District permission to use War Department land. An army colonel was appointed to hold hearings on the matter and “for seven months, he listened to both

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