Thousands celebrate Golden Gate Bridge’s 75th anniversary

Tens of thousands of people congregated at San Francisco’s waterfront on Sunday to celeberate the 75th centenary of the Golden Gate Bridge, one of the most eminent and iconic architectural structures of the world that draws ten million visitors per year.

The metropolis hosted very big festivities. Visitors enjoyed the tug boats and other water crafts. A number of events that stretched from Fort Point south of the bridge to Pier 39 down The Embarcadero were organized. Besides, dance, music, antique motorcycles and cars in addition to fireworks at the doorway to San Francisco Bay fascinated visitors.

"We have never walked across the bridge, so we thought we should do it today," said Gilroy native Janis Filice, who was at the famous international orange structure with her husband, Greg, to double celebrate their wedding anniversary , according to a report by Mercury News. "We wanted to come and experience this."

The bridge was opened to the public on May 27, 1937. At the time of its opening, the Golden Gate was the world’s longest suspension bridge.

According to recorded statistics, since the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge, which was named after the Golden Gate Strait, the doorway of water to San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean, around 2 billion vehicles have crossed it. The 1.7-mile long bridge, a brainchild of engineer Joseph Strauss, makes itself out by its exclusive color, selected by architect Irving Morrow and named International Orange.

In sharp opposition to the celebrations, members of Bridge Rail Foundation (BRF), a group devoted to prevent suicide jumps from the Golden Gate Bridge, put on show 1,558 pairs of shoes. According to the group member, the shoes represent the number of people who have died as a result of suicide jumps from the bridge since its opening in 937.

"It’s a symbol of how deep and serious this problem has been," said Paul Muller, a spokesman for the group, according to USA Today. "We’re still losing 30 to 35 a people a year off the bridge," he added.