ve Curriculum Series,
Edited by Cathleen Banister-Marx
Tufts University, 4 Colby Street, Medford, MA 02155
(617) 627-5394 FAX (617)627-3995 wright_center@tufts.edu
http://www.tufts.edu/as/wright_center
The Golden Gate Bridge:
From U.S. History to Physics
Beth C. Pelland, Physics
Gideon Fischer, History
Longmeadow High School
Longmeadow, MA
Tufts
University
Massachusetts Space
Grant Consortium
Fondation H.
Dudley Wright
Commonwealth
of Massachusetts
Foundation for
the Future THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE
FROM U.S. HISTORY TO PHYSICS

Beth C. Pelland, Physics
Gideon Fischer, History
Londmeadow High School
Longmeadow, MA
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................. 2
EXERCISES
Opening Class Exercise............................................................................3
What Do You Know About Bridges?.......................................................4
The Golden Gate Bridge, Facts and Figures.............................................5
The Fermi Solution.................................................................................11
What Is It to Be an Engineer?.................................................................13
Super Bridge Viewing Guide..................................................................15
Super Bridge Internet Activity................................................................ 17
Bridge Building: A Contest!...................................................................31
Lab: Strength of Cables..........................................................................32
PERIODICAL LITERATURE ....................................................................... 36
First Person Accounts of the Golden Gate Bridge..................................42
EARTHQUAKES: INTERNET RESEARCH..................................................48
The Seismic Retrofit of the Golden Gate Bridge ................................... 53
CLOSING ACTIVITY......................................................................................54
REFERENCES.................................................................................................54 Courtesy of Pics 4 learning. Photo byGene Bias
2 INTRODUCTION
GOAL:
Our goal was to create a unit that explores all aspects of the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge
from its conception to the present. The unit explores such things as first-hand stories from the men
who devoted years of their lives to the bridge, and the science that has made the bridge such an
enduring part of the Pacific Coastline. Students will perform research online as well as study
articles written when the bridge was built. They will read about the engineers who are seismically
retrofitting the bridge, and in a lab setting they will test the strength of cables made from copper and
bicycle wire. By the close of the unit, students should understand the interconnectedness of the
world that we live in, especially through the eyes of a historian and a physicist.
MATERIALS AND RESOURCES:
Two incredibly useful resources came from the Golden Gate Tourism Office:
http://www.goldengatebridge.org/gift/books.html#60thAnnEdCER
415-923-2342
1. The Golden Gate Bridge: Report of the Chief Engineer by Joseph B. Strauss and Clifford
Emmett Paine.
2. Spanning the Gate: The Golden Gate Bridge by Stephen Cassady..
Other resources are: Conceptual Physics by Paul G. Hewitt Kashima, S & Kitagawa, M.,"The Longest Suspension Bridge, Scientific American, December
1997, 88-92.
Recommended videos are:
1. "Super Bridge" video from Nova (PBS), 1997
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bridge/
2. "Tacoma Narrows Bridge" video
Avaliable through The Camera Shop, Tacoma
http://www.camerashoptacoma.com/narrows.asp#
253-627-4159
3 OPENING CLASS EXERCISE
In the first activity of the Golden Gate Bridge curriculum, students will examine their own
understanding of the significance of bridges. Students should be placed in groups of three or four
and given the following list of questions to answer. After the groups finish answering the questions,
reassemble the class for the purpose of having a large group discussion.
BACKGROUND ON THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE
An excellent source for background material on the Golden Gate Bridge can be found at:
http://www.goldengate.org/
. Background reading Building the Golden Gate Bridge can be
found on the above Web site and would be appropriate for students to read as a homework
assignment. If your school has access to the internet, students should be given the opportunity to
explore this site as it contains a wealth of information about the Bridge. Students can take a virtual
walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, look at different photographs taken during construction and
examine various data relating to the Bridge. All materials are easily downloaded and printed off the
Web site to be used in class.

DO WE REALLY NEED A BRIDGE WITH SIX LANES OF TRAFFIC?
The Golden Gate Bridge was built for no other purpose than to serve the automobile driver. The
ferry system, which had been in use in the San Francisco area since 1850 was severely strained due
to the expansion of automobile ownership throughout the 1920s. As city dwellers purchased
automobiles, more and more people moved to the suburbs, which in San Francisco meant moving to
the other side of the San Francisco Bay. In order to get to the city, suburbanites relied on the ferry
system. Traffic at ferry terminals often was backed up for miles and a family on their way to a
picnic in the Golden Gate Park or a businessman needing to get to downtown San Francisco could
easily waste an entire day waiting for the ferry. This, in and of itself, dictated the need for the
building of a bridge across the Golden Gate.
In order to understand why Americans became such consumers of automobiles in the 1920s and
the 1930s, Henry Ford's use of the assembly line should be studied. Other factors such as the
increased use of credit when purchasing an automobile was also instrumental in enabling more
Americans to purchase automobiles. Most high school history texts have sections covering the
history of automobiles. In terms of lessons, the topic of automobiles lends itself to diverse activities
such as simulations of an assembly line to rich discussions about the role of automobiles in our
society.
4 Name _________________________________ Period ___
Date ________________
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT BRIDGES?
In your small group, answer the following questions with as much detail as possible. You can use a
separate sheet of paper for your answers.
1. What is the purpose of a bridge?
2. Why are bridges important to study?
3. What materials are used in building bridges?
4. Who benefits when a bridge is built?
5. How would your life be different if the largest bridge near your house was no longer there? Be
specific.
6. Who builds bridges? Create a chart listing the different workers needed in order to build a
bridge and the jobs they perform.
7. Where does the money needed to build a bridge come from? Be specific.
8. Why do you think some bridges are beautiful, ornate and pleasing to the eye, while others are
dull, gray, and without character? Explain your answers.
5 Teacher Answer Page
THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE: FACTS AND FIGURES
We will begin our study of the Golden Gate Bridge online by doing some research about some
bridge facts and figures.
After entering the Internet, visit The Official Website of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Golden
Gate Bus and Ferry Transit
http://www.goldengatebridge.org
Begin by visiting the photos to gain an idea of the relative size of the Golden Gate and the
bridge that spans it.
Now click on Research Library
then on Construction Data
then on Design and Construction Statistics
1. What is the total length of the bridge, including approaches?
1.7 miles = 8,981ft = 2,737 m
2. What is the length of the suspension span including the main and side spans?
1.2 miles = 6450 ft = 1966 m
3. What is the length of the main span portion of the suspended structure?
4200 ft = 1280 m
4. What is the clearance above mean high water?
220 ft = 67 m
5. What do you think "the clearance above mean high water" means? Be specific.
The distance between the bottom of the bridge with live load and the high tide.
Live load: load with cars and pedestrians.
6. What is the deepest foundation below mean low water?
110 ft = 34 m
6 7. What do you think is the purpose for putting the foundation so deep?
To lower the center of gravity of the Bridge to increase stability.
8. What was the original combined weight of the Bridge, anchorages, and north and south
approaches?
894,500 tons = 811,500,000 kg
9. How many pounds are in one ton?
2000 lbs = 1 ton
10. What is the combined weight of the Bridge, anchorages, and north and south approaches as of
1986?
887,000 tons = 804,700,000 kg
11. How many times your weight is the weight of the Bridge (using 1986 figures)?
887,000 tons x 2000 lb/ton = 1. 774 x I0
9
lb
Then divide by weight in pounds to obtain ratio.
12. What is the difference between the original and reconstructed bridge (in tons and
kilograms) and what do you think accounts for the difference?
7500 = 6,800,000 kg
Renovations to the bridge have occurred with lighter weight and stronger materials
13. What is the height of each tower above water?
746 ft = 227m
14. What is the length of one main cable?
7650 ft = 2,332 m
15. What is the total length of wire used in one main cable?
80,000 mi = 129,000 km
16. How many wires are in each cable?
27,572
17. Wh