The Golden Gate Bridge is a marvel of engineering and architecture considered by many to be one of the world’s most beautiful bridges, its picturesque vistas favored by photographers, artists, visitors to San Francisco, and almost everyone else. When naysayers said it couldn’t be built, Joseph Strauss and a team of visionaries spun 80,000 miles of wire and riveted nearly 900,000 tons of steel into gossamer wings, spanning for the first time an immense gulf and linking the Pacific coast. In black-and-white photography,  Historic Photos of the Golden Gate Bridge  details the history of the bridge from its design and construction to recent times. Nearly 200 rarely seen images offer a compelling look at the bridge, from the days when the treacherous currents of the Golden Gate could be crossed only by boat to the rise of the bridge as a national landmark. This book is sure to delight both those who dream of the impossible and those who live to make it happen. Anne Merritt has a lifetime acquaintance with bridges. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania—another city with numerous bridges spanning its three rivers—and daughter of an engineer, she appreciates how much effort a big project can require in time, funding, and labor. A resident of the San Francisco bay area since 1989, she enjoys frequent glimpses of the Golden Gate Bridge. Watching the sun set behind the bridge from the Oakland hills remains, she thinks, one of the best ways to end a day.