San Francisco, CA

The Golden Gate Bridge Was a Dream That Turned Into a Depression-Era Nightmare for the 11 Men Who Died During Its Construction

Published

1 year ago

January 5, 2025

The Golden Gate Bridge Was a Dream That Turned Into a Depression-Era Nightmare for the 11 Men Who Died During Its Construction

The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge was an immense project with an immense cost.
George Rinhart / Corbis via Getty Images

Today, San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge may be the world’s most photographed. Upon its completion, it became Earth’s longest suspension bridge and the Bay Area’s most famous attraction.

But in the early 20th century, it was just an impossible dream—and when construction workers broke ground on January 5, 1933, work started inauspiciously as they began moving three million cubic feet of dirt.

The idea for a bridge across the Golden Gate Strait, where the Pacific Ocean flows into the bay in Northern California, was first floated in 1872 by railroad mogul Charles Crocker. But most dismissed Crocker’s idea. A bridge stretching almost two miles across open ocean? Unfeasible.

Nearly five decades later, in 1916, San Francisco engineer James H. Wilkins re-proposed the bridge, and by 1919, officials tasked city engineer Michael M. O’Shaughnessy with exploring the idea. When O’Shaughnessy consulted with engineers from across the country, most estimated such a project would cost more than $100 million, if it could be done at all.

One engineer, though, believed in the project from the start: Joseph B. Strauss, who told O’Shaughnessy it could be built for around $27 million.

Strauss’ original design was a dud, so he recruited other players who steered the project onto a successful course. Charles Ellis, an Illinois engineer, and Leon Moisseiff, designer of New York City’s Manhattan Bridge, drew up a new, $35 million plan. Architect Irving Morrow contributed the Gate’s famous aesthetics, like its Art Deco lines, dramatic lighting and iconic reddish color—called “industry orange.”

Construction began in January 1933. In 1934, the north tower was raised, and in 1935, the south pier. By 1936, workers had built a precarious catwalk between them so they could build suspension cables in situ.

Facing Pacific winds atop the towers, workers insulated their jackets with crumpled newspaper. “You put all the clothes on you had and worked, worked hard, or you’d freeze,” worker Martin Adams told KQED. He called the Golden Gate Strait “the coldest place I’ve ever worked.”

Still, it was the 1930s—the middle of the Great Depression—and people were desperate for work. Hopeful men lined up, waiting for construction jobs that would open when laborers inevitably died on the job.

Loss of life was expected with big projects like this one, but Strauss took a special interest in protecting the bridge’s builders. Workers wore special hard hats and glare-free goggles, and Strauss insisted on an unheard-of construction feature: a $130,000 safety net. It ended up catching 19 men, who called themselves the “Halfway to Hell Club.” But it didn’t catch all who fell.

On February 17, 1936, construction workers were tasked with removing wooden scaffolding, working from a temporary catwalk. Adams watched as the catwalk broke away, ripped through the safety net and fell into the ocean, taking 12 men with it—220 feet down.

“The only thing that went through my mind was survival,” said Slim Lambert, one of the falling men. “I knew that to have a prayer, I had to hit the water feet first.”

When Lambert plunged into the Pacific, his legs became tangled in the sinking net. He was pulled so deep that his ears bled before he untangled himself and swam to the surface. He and two others were plucked from the waves by a crab fisherman, but only Lambert and colleague Oscar Osberg survived.

Construction continued. By May 1936, the cable compression was finished, In November, two main span sections were joined, marked by a blessing with holy water. In the first half of 1937, the roadway was paved.

Finally, on the morning of May 27, 1937, 18,000 people gathered on each side of the finished Golden Gate Bridge as it opened to pedestrians. San Franciscans had fun with it, marking historic firsts: The San Francisco Chronicle recorded the first person to walk across the bridge on stilts, pushing a stroller, on roller skates, on a unicycle and while playing a tuba. A week’s worth of celebrations became known as the Golden Gate Bridge Fiesta.

The bridge has since become a symbol of architectural ingenuity and Bay Area style. After all, its construction was championed by citizens who voted to spend a fortune building a structure once deemed impossible in a time of economic strife.

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San Francisco, CA

Sea lion pup found in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset malnourished but ‘feisty’

Published

12 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Sea lion pup found in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset malnourished but ‘feisty’

A California sea lion pup found last week on a San Francisco street corner is malnourished but “active and quite feisty,” The Marine Mammal Center said Monday.

The sea lion, believed to be about 10 months old, had apparently wandered into city’s Outer Sunset neighborhood and was discovered early Thursday morning, authorities said.

The pup was spotted near 48th and Irving Streets, one block from Ocean Beach and Sunset Dunes park. A trained responder from the Marine Mammal Center was joined by San Francisco park rangers and police officers to safely corral the pup, now named ‘Irving’, into a carrier crate.

Dubbed ‘Irving’ by his rescuers, Irving weighed in at 40 pounds and is considered malnourished, the Marine Mammal Center said.

“The sea lion is active and quite feisty which is a positive initial sign in terms of general behavior,” the center said in a news release on Monday.

During an exam by veterinarians, a series of blood samples were also taken to determine whether there’s any underlying ailment.

Irving is being tube fed a fish smoothie blend two times per day to boost hydration and weight; offers of whole herring will also begin shortly.

The quick actions by police, recreation and parks staff and Ocean Avenue Animal Hospital gave the young sea lion a second chance at life, said Lauren Campbell, animal husbandry manager at The Marine Mammal Center.

“As a roughly 10-month-old pup in his first year of learning how to forage on his own, this animal has a long road to recovery due to his severe malnutrition,” Campbell said. “We are hopeful that in the coming weeks with continued specialized care that this pup starts to make positive strides toward recovery and release.”

Irving will be held in the Center’s Intensive Quarantine Unit until clearing medical protocols, before likely being transferred this week to a traditional rehabilitation pool pen. A long-term prognosis and potential release timeline are not currently known.

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San Francisco, CA

Giants Head Home to San Francisco After Shutout Loss

Published

1 day ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Giants Head Home to San Francisco After Shutout Loss

After Sunday’s 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, the San Francisco Giants headed back to the West Coast. They’re going back to the Bay Area, too.

The Giants have a date with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game series at Oracle Park starting Tuesday night.

So, San Francisco probably wanted to get out of Washington, D.C., with a win. That didn’t happen at Nationals Park on Sunday afternoon.

Nationals reliever Andrew Alvarez, the third pitcher used by the team on Sunday, picked up the victory with 4 1/3 innings of work. Giants starter Robbie Ray absorbed the loss, falling to 2-3 this season.

Ray worked six innings, giving up seven hits, three runs (all earned), walking one, and striking out seven Nationals. If the Giants’ offense had found a way to tack on some runs, then Ray’s outing wouldn’t have looked so bad.

The Giants’ bats, though, had eight hits. The big number for Giants manager Tony Vitello to look at in the box score after this one was, well, pretty big. San Francisco left 10 runners on base on Sunday, going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. This indicates that San Francisco had plenty of opportunities to score some runs.

They just didn’t get the job done.

Let’s go to the bottom of the fifth with the Giants and Nationals in a scoreless tie. With nobody out, the Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz connected for his third double this season. Nasim Nuñez scored to put Washington up 1-0.

With one out, Curtis Mead sent a Ray pitch over the left-field wall, a two-run blast that gave the Nationals a 3-0 lead.

San Francisco had a scoring threat in the top of the eighth inning. With runners at first and second base and nobody out, Casey Schmitt grounded into a double play. Matt Chapman, who was on second base, went to third. But the Giants were unable to bring him home.

Rafael Devers and Drew Gilbert went 2-for-4 at the plate for the Giants, producing half of the Giants’ hits.

The Giants fall to 9-13 this season, sitting in fourth place in the National League West Division. The Nationals’ record goes to 10-12, good enough for third place in the National League East Division.

All eyes now turn toward Oracle on Tuesday night. It’ll be a chance for two longtime rivals to renew their rivalry.

Baseball fans know that the Giants-Dodgers matchups usually are must-see TV.

That’s probably going to be the case once again as Giants fans watch their team battle the Dodgers. Those lucky to have tickets to the three-game series at Oracle Park will show up in Giants colors, hoping to see Los Angeles head back to Southern California with either a series loss or a Giants’ sweep.

Buckle up, Giants fans. It’s about to get rowdy at Oracle Park.

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San Francisco, CA

Why do gray whales keep dying in San Francisco’s waters?

Published

2 days ago

April 19, 2026

Press Room

Why do gray whales keep dying in San Francisco’s waters?

The 4,140-sq-km bay is the largest estuary on the west coast of the US. Before 2018, this species of whales wasn’t known to stop seasonally or consistently in the bay, bypassing it on their migration route down to Baja California and back up the Arctic, said Josephine Slaathaug, who led a recent study on gray whale mortality in the bay.

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