The Golden Gate Bridge

Although people had talked about building a bridge across the Golden Gate waterway since the 1800's, it was Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal that financed it and made the Golden Gate Bridge project possible. The sheer size of San Francisco Bay, and the fierce winds and waves that roll into it from the Pacific, prompted many engineers to say that the bridge couldn't be built. Innovative design and brilliant engineering, however, enabled the longest suspension bridge in the world at the time to become a reality. Today, this bright orange structure stands as proof of the fact that human ingenuity can enable us to triumph over seemingly impossible odds.

Our nation's unique identity has been formed, in large part, by the monuments and landmarks we have erected. Structures such as the famous Gateway Arch in St. Louis and the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., stand today as permanent reminders of the people and events that have built a strong America. Many of these structures made history even as they were created; most integrated the latest in design and technology and required the skills of thousands of workers. For the first time, the Building America series chronicles the massive undertakings that mark some of the greatest triumphs of human engineering. The fact that these projects were even attempted, and then completed successfully, is a testament to the boldness of human ingenuity and a tribute to the brave spirit of the American people. It is that special spirit that is now captured in the pages of the Building America series.

Grades 3-7; 7 1/2 x 9; 48 pages; 40-45 photos; Chronology; Glossary; Further Reading; Source; Notes; Index

Written in an interesting style, include[s] clear black-and-white and full-color photographs of the construction process and feature[s] sidebars that give information on related topics of interest...good addition for larger collections and for those libraries with regional interest in the subject.