Golden Gate Bridge Fast Facts

CNN Editorial Research

Updated 1522 GMT (2322 HKT) July 26, 2020

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The Golden Gate Bridge, which spans the San Francisco Bay and connects the city to its northern suburbs, is one of the world's most famous structures. Its construction 78 years ago over a deep, treacherous channel was a marvel of modern engineering. In this photo, pedestrians walk across the bridge on May 27, 1937 -- one day before it opened to vehicular traffic. Click through to see other photos of the bridge's construction and grand opening.
Photos: The grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge, which spans the San Francisco Bay and connects the city to its northern suburbs, is one of the world's most famous structures. Its construction 78 years ago over a deep, treacherous channel was a marvel of modern engineering. In this photo, pedestrians walk across the bridge on May 27, 1937 -- one day before it opened to vehicular traffic. Click through to see other photos of the bridge's construction and grand opening.
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This aerial image from 1934 shows downtown San Francisco and construction of the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. The bridge's north Marin Tower is nearly completed, although the southern one had yet to be erected.
Photos: The grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge
This aerial image from 1934 shows downtown San Francisco and construction of the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. The bridge's north Marin Tower is nearly completed, although the southern one had yet to be erected.
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Bridge workers build a catwalk that connects the towers at both sides of the strait so they can attach the suspension cables to hold up the bridge. Workers on the bridge were buffeted by high winds and faced constant fears of plummeting to their deaths.
Photos: The grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge
Bridge workers build a catwalk that connects the towers at both sides of the strait so they can attach the suspension cables to hold up the bridge. Workers on the bridge were buffeted by high winds and faced constant fears of plummeting to their deaths.
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Workers in 1935 install the first section of a huge safety net, at a cost of $98,000, that extended beneath the bridge from shore to shore. The netting was added to catch workers who tumbled off their precarious steel perches above.
Photos: The grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge
Workers in 1935 install the first section of a huge safety net, at a cost of $98,000, that extended beneath the bridge from shore to shore. The netting was added to catch workers who tumbled off their precarious steel perches above.
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This portrait shows members of the bridge's "Halfway to Hell Club" -- workers who had tumbled off the bridge but were saved by the safety netting below. Despite the netting, 11 workers died during the bridge's construction. Ten of them perished when a section of scaffold fell through the netting.
Photos: The grand opening of the Golden Gate Bridge