The Golden Gate Bridge spans a mile wide and three miles in length channel between San Francisco and the Pacific Ocean. It has been declared one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Opened May 1937
The Bridge opened in 1937 and was, until 1964, the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,300 feet. When the bridge was opened, the festivities started on May 27, 1937, and lasted for one week. Below is a film of opening day.
Motorcade crossed
“The day before vehicle traffic was allowed, 200,000 people crossed either on foot or on roller skates. On opening day, Mayor Angelo Rossi and other officials rode the ferry to Marin, then crossed the bridge in a motorcade past three ceremonial “barriers”, the last a blockade of beauty queens who required Joseph Strauss to present the bridge to the Highway District before allowing him to pass.
Building the Golden Gate Bridge: A Workers’ Oral History
President Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington D. C.
The next day, President Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington, D.C. signaling the official start of vehicle traffic over the Bridge at noon. When the celebration got out of hand, the SFPD had a small riot in the uptown Polk Gulch area. Weeks of civil and cultural activities called “the Fiesta” followed.
